An Exchange
by SweetestSuicide
Summary: Strawberry Panic x Maria-sama ga Miteru crossover! What would happen if the Roses families got exchanged over to the Strawberry Academies?
1. Chapter 1

**One**

They couldn't believe that they had been chosen as exchange students. They still had a lot to do with the Yumayurikai. They were Rosa Chinensis, Rosa Foetida and Rosa Gigantea after all. Not to mention, their en boutons and petite soeurs would be accompanying them as well, which meant there would be no one left to look after the Rose Mansion. However, the principal did inform them that they needed not to worry about the school affairs, as they would be taking care of that while they would spend six months at the other girl's school, none of them could feel at ease about it.

Satou Sei, a third year that held the title of Rosa Gigantea, didn't seem to mind about the whole student exchange business. In fact, she looked somewhat excited and couldn't wait to embark on this new journey that she was sure none of her friends were looking forward to. Her en bouton, Toudo Shimako, was quite the same as her but her emotions didn't reflect on her reaction such as her Onee-sama did.

Torii Eriko, a third year that held the title of Rosa Foetida, wasn't expecting such a turn of event. Yes, she had heard that the principal would be choosing some of the students from Lilian's Girl's High School up for exchange, but she didn't expect it to be her group from Yumayurikai. She was the first to object to this, placing reasons such as no one would be left to run the Student Council and help with the school activities. Her reasons were set aside and she was defeated, but that didn't mean that she was still worrying about it.

Her en bouton, Hasekura Rei, wasn't too pleased with the fact that she had to leave her Kendo Club behind. She wasn't worrying about the Rose Mansion as much as her Onee-sama was, but she was sure worrying about the Kendo Club. Her petite soeur, Shimazu Yoshino, was all too excited for the White Roses family comprehend. She was looking forward to the trip because that could only meant she would have more time to spend with her Onee-sama/cousin.

Mizuno Youko, a third year that held the title of Rosa Chinensis, was all calm and collected upon hearing this news. She was the second to bring up the matter to the principal, and like her friend, Rosa Foetida, her reasons were set aside. Of course, she was worrying about the six months that they would all be apart from the school's affairs, but she knew that there was nothing she could do when the principal had set his mind on it.

Her en bouton, Ogasawara Sachiko, was unfazed by it. Sure, she would be missing her family but she knew that six months would go by very fast when her petite soeur would be with her. Besides, she had heard a lot of good things about the school that they were to be exchanged to. For the first part, there was no male in the school. For the second part, it was absolutely peaceful. Those weren't the reasons why her petite soeur, Fukuzawa Yumi, was excited. She wanted to have all the time that she could spend with her Onee-sama. It was as if she hadn't spent enough time with her. And for some reason, Sachiko was feeling the same as well.

"This is ridiculous!" Eriko sighed irritatingly. "How did they pick us out of all the students in the school?"

"Perhaps they are just trying to give us some break." Youko suggested.

"Or some fresh air and a new environment to study in!" Sei added enthusiastically.

Eriko eyed the other two Roses for a moment before she turned to her en bouton. "Rei, what do you think about this?"

"I don't like it." Rei replied with a small frown. "I have to part the Kendo Club for six months."

Yoshino's eye twitched as if her Onee-sama had given the wrong answer. "Is that all you care about?"

Rei looked over at Yoshino, confused at the reason behind the younger girl's question. "Yes, is there anything else I should be worried about?"

Yoshino frowned, trying as best as she could to hold in the anger that was boiling up inside her but the attempt was in vain. Soon enough she was standing from her seat, pointing her finger at Rei with a disappointed look. However, words were unable to escape her mouth when she all she wanted to say was '_Me! You should worry about me too!'_ So instead of saying those words, she gave out an irritated sigh and retracted her hand as she sat back down. "Never mind."

"It is already set, there is no need to sit around complaining and whining about it." Youko said as she brought her cup of tea to her lips.

"What Youko said, it wouldn't do any of you any good anyway." Sei said with a sigh. "You all should be happy, we wouldn't have to do any work except for studying for the whole six months!"

"The only thing that I am wondering about is the three academies there." Shimako said softly.

Sei gave it some thought before agreeing. "Ah, yes! St Miator, St Spica and St Lulim, right?"

"As I've heard and gathered information about those three schools," Youko began. "St Miator's Girl's Academy is the oldest school in the campus that held a history of 100 years. It is also known for its upholding traditions. The second oldest is St Spica's Girl's Institute that specializes in sports. Lastly it's the St Lulim's Girl's School that is known for its carefree and relaxed character."

"Mmm, which do you think each of us will be under?" Eriko asked curiously.

"Should we go for our personality?" Youko asked.

"Alright then!" Sei said before she pointed her finger towards Youko. "You'd definitely in St Miator!"

Youko blinked before she smiled, amused at Sei's guess. "Oh? Why would you think that?"

"For a school that is known for its traditions, I'm certain that it would be quite strict and you wouldn't need to keep up with the rules. Besides, whichever school you get put under, I'm very sure that you'd work hard for it." Sei answered.

Youko chuckled. "Ah, you're right. Well, I guess it's my turn to guess." She paused, observing Sei for a short second before smiling. "You'd do fine in St Spica. I believe that you'd fit perfectly in it."

"Well, if that's what you believe, then I guess I'll settle for that answer." Sei responded.

Both of the two Roses turned to look at Erika before grinning. "You're in St Lulim. There's no doubt about it!"

Eriko sighed, defeated at her friends' guess. She might as well be in St Lulim. She was carefree and quite relaxed, if there was nothing to bother her that much.

"Well then, Shimako would be in St Miator because she is quite a traditional person." Sei said which caused Shimako's cheeks to fluster lightly. "Rei would definitely be in St Spica because of her athletic build. Yoshino would be in St Spica as well since Rei would be in it. Sachiko would definitely be in St Miator and Yumi…" She paused, having trouble to guess which school Yumi would be in. "Umm….Yumi…"

Yumi blinked at Sei, confused why she would be stuck at her own guessing when it came down to her. "Um…Rosa Gigantea?"

Sei held up a hand. "Shh, I got this!"

Yumi chuckled nervously as the rest of the Yumayurikai watched as Sei struggled with trying to picture Yumi in any of the three schools. After a long time of thinking, Sei let out a sigh and shrugged. "Yumi would either be in St Miator or St Lulim."

Youko chuckled and nodded. "Well, Sei, I have the list of where we would be in once we got there."

Everyone let out a gasp of surprise, however, Sei's gasp was more out of shock. "What? You got the list all of this time and you let me guess?"

"It was quite interesting, especially when you came to a stop at Yumi-chan." Youko said in amusement. "You did make some right guesses though."

"Rosa Chinensis, may we see the list?" Shimako asked politely.

Youko smiled and nodded, pulling the list out from her bag and set it on the table. Most of Sei's guesses were correct, but what she didn't know that whichever school the Roses have been placed in, their en boutons and petite soeurs would follow suit as well. Youko's Red Rose family was placed in St Miator, the White Rose family was placed in St Lulim and the Yellow Rose family was placed in St Spica. They already have the uniforms all prepared for them, and it wasn't long until they would have to bid farewell to St Lilian's High School for six months to go to an unknown ground. Nevertheless, the idea of being an exchange student had never crossed their minds.


	2. Chapter 2

**Two**

The Strawberry Dormitory was more than being a little excited because of the exchange students that would be coming here. Rumors about the exchange students being the most beautiful girls were spreading. Not many believe that these girls would be able to rival with their current Etoile, Hanazono Shizuma. The only girl that they all believed would rival the Etoile's beauty was Ohtori Amane whom to be the Prince of St Spica. Even with all the rumors starting about the newcomers, it didn't phase Shizuma one bit. The current Etoile didn't care about it even though she was pushed to care about such matter. The only person that was pushing her was her best friend, and also the School Council President of St Miator, Rokujou Miyuki. If Shizuma could, she would rather shut herself in a place where Miyuki wouldn't be able to find her so she wouldn't have to do all these Etoile's business.

"The eight St Lilian Girls' School' students will be here within next week, can I get a promise from you that you will be there to greet them?" Miyuki asked in her business-like tone as she helped Shizuma with the Etoile's paperwork.

Shizuma shot a glance at her friend, heaved out a small sigh before turning back to her own paperwork. "Do I need to promise you such thing?" She asked plainly.

"Of course," Miyuki quickly responded much to Shizuma's dismay. "You are the Etoile of all the three schools. You need to be present."

Shizuma sighed once again. "I suppose I don't have any other way to do what you've asked of me, Miyuki."

It was then that Miyuki shot her a look, and even though Shizuma was wearing a blank mask, she could clearly tell that the silver-haired beauty wasn't happy about it. Perhaps she should bring Aoi Nagisa, Shizuma's affection of interest, along to lighten up the atmosphere. However, greeting the newcomers wasn't the job for a non-member of Student Council, so asking Nagisa along was out of the question. Shizuma would have to suck it up and play the nice Etoile that the schools loved and adored, and she knew that her friend would do a perfect job at it.

"Three of the eight students will be in Miator," Miyuki started which didn't seem to catch Shizuma's attention. The latter was merely half listening to her. "Mizuno Youko, a sixth grader. Ogasawara Sachiko, a fifth grader and Fukuzawa Yumi, a fourth grader. They are the Red Rose family."

The mention of the Red Rose family sparked her interest. She glanced over at Miyuki, halting her paperwork. "Red Rose family?"

Knowing that she had succeeded in catching Shizuma's attention, she held in a smile as she nodded. "Yes, in St Lilian's School, there is a system called Soeur. Any fifth graders and above can take a fourth grader in as their petite soeur as known as little sister. The student council over there is called the Yumayurikai and it consisted of three Roses; Yellow, White and Red. The Yellow Rose is called Rosa Foetida, the White Rose is Rosa Gigantea and the Red Rose is Rosa Chinensis. Mizuno Youko is the head of the Red Rose as it is passed down to her from her grand soeur. Her petite soeur, which is called, Rosa Chinensis en bouton is Ogasawara Sachiko. And the en bouton's petite soeur is Fukuzawa Yumi. Those three are a part of the Red Rose Family."

Intrigued by the idea of having a little sister, Shizuma's eyes began to sparkle in interest. "Do you think we could have the system over at the Strawberry Dorm as well?" She just wanted to take Nagisa under as her little sister, and of course, claiming that the girl was hers.

Miyuki chuckled softly before she turned to look at Shizuma. "If we have that sort of system over here, I believe that everyone would be running wild with their little sisters and big sisters. Remember, Shizuma, the Astrea Hill consisted of three schools, not one."

Shizuma let out a puff in disappointment, she was looking forward to calling Nagisa her _petite soeur_ if Miyuki was to agree to the idea. Well, even if Miyuki didn't, she would find a way to secretly make Nagisa her little sister without Miyuki knowing. Then again, that plan would go to void when Miyuki could always find out whatever it is that Shizuma was up to.

Miyuki chuckled in amusement at Shizuma's disappointed expression before she turned her attention back to the paperwork. Before she read through the form before her, she checked her wrist watch and sighed lightly. "It is almost time for the Student Councils Meeting."

"Another boring meeting it seems." Shizuma sighed as she tidied her workstation.

"Stay here and don't move." Miyuki said in a demanding tone. When Shizuma looked up at her in amusement, she was greeted with a serious look from Miyuki. The silver-haired beauty sighed and shrugged.

"Alright, I won't move."

Once Miyuki had left the room, Shizuma quietly stood up from her chair and moved herself over to the glass door. She knew that she shouldn't be doing this, but there was no way she was going to stay in this room for another 40 minutes. She couldn't endure the gaze of expectation from St Spica's Student Council President, Toumori Shion. That wide forehead girl was making it difficult for her to even listen to her own voice. So this was the easy way out, and she knew that she would be scolded by Miyuki one way or another. Well, she could take that than sitting in that room for another minute.

Shizuma slipped out of the room as quietly as she could, and quickly made her way towards the school backyard. She knew that no one would be able to find her here, and she could finally relax her mind for a while. When she made her way to the tree that was filled with all the happy and painful memories, she didn't expect to see another person there. When the girl came into her view, her lips curled up into a smile when that girl was no other than Aoi Nagisa. She wondered what the younger girl was doing there, but when she made her way closer she could hear the girl counting. She could also see that Nagisa had closed her eyes, and it appeared that she was playing hide-and-seek with her friends. She quietly watched the girl counting with amusement before she knew it, Nagisa was almost at 100. So she moved quietly over to stand in front of the girl, just to see what the younger girl's reaction would be when she opened her eyes.

"One hundred!" Nagisa said excitedly as she moved her hands to uncover her eyes. Once her eyes have been greeted by the light, her cheeks immediately flushed at the sight before her. There, standing there in all its glory and beauty, was Hanazono Shizuma, the only one woman that could make her heart beat as fast as it was beating at this moment. "Shizuma-sama!"

Shizuma chuckled, thoroughly amused at Nagisa's reaction. "Good day, Nagisa."

Realizing that she was standing quite close to the Etoile, Nagisa quickly took a step back and bowed her head respectively. "G-good day, Etoile-sama!"

Shizuma smiled, and even though she didn't want Nagisa to be so nervous around her but it couldn't be helped. It was all too amusing to watch the younger girl before her, without her having to do anything but be in Nagisa's presence. "Why were you counting, may I ask?"

Nagisa's cheeks darkened slightly out of embarrassment. "Umm...Since I've only been here for a couple of days, I don't know the campus quite well. So Tamao-chan and the girls from the neighboring room decided to help me explore the campus. I wanted to make it fun so I suggested we play hide-and-seek with me being the seeker."

That sounded quite interesting and fun to Shizuma, but she didn't show it. And even though she wanted to participate in the game just to hide from Miyuki and her helpers, she knew that it would make the game very awkward to the others. Nagisa might not mind the idea, but what would the other students think of her when she voluntarily participates in such childish activity?

"I see. Would you like me to show you around some time?" Shizuma asked softly.

Taken aback by the unexpected question, Nagisa looked up at the taller girl, which was clearly a mistake. She knew that once her eyes fixated on Shizuma's gaze, her body wouldn't be able to move and she would feel weak. Shizuma, knowing that Nagisa had taken in the bait, had quickly moved closer to the younger girl as she wrapped a hand around Nagisa's waist. She pulled the younger girl closer as she gently cupped the girl's chin between her fingers, lifting her head up to really look at her.

"I promise the places that I would be showing you won't be in your friends' list." Shizuma said seductively as her eyes watched Nagisa's helpless expression. All too soon she heard footsteps behind her, and she heaved out a sigh of disappointment. "Hopefully, I'd be hearing your answer soon."

Shizuma let go off of Nagisa and quickly made an exit. When she was out of sight, she could hear Suzumi Tamao's voice asking if her roommate was alright. She sighed and shook her head. When she was just about to have some fun, someone would turn up and ruin it.


	3. Chapter 3

**Three**

Finally, the time had come for both of the four schools' Student Councils to meet. The girls from St Lilian Girls' High School weren't as pleased about leaving their school behind for six months, and they hoped that they would feel welcome here at Astrea's Academies. They had soon found out about the Etoile system, and they couldn't quite understand why the other three Student Council Presidents couldn't work around without this said Etoile. To them, it was quite unnecessary to place all decisions on one person, regardless of which school the Etoile was in. If the three Student Council Presidents couldn't even agree to one idea, or merge all three ideas together, what was the point of the whole Student Council system at all?

"I wonder how we are going to address them." Sei thought aloud as the Yumayurikai gang was making their way towards Astrea Hill.

"I suppose by their surname with the added 'sama'." Youko said. "However, I think it might be different with the Etoile."

Eriko frowned a little. "I've heard that the Etoile is the same as us. Surely, I don't believe that we should address her as _Etoile-sama_. I believe that we should just address her by her surname with the much added 'san'. We don't see students our age address us as such back in Lilian."

Youko let out a sigh. "If that is how we are going to address the Etoile of all the three schools, I can't complain with you there." She then turned to the rest of the younger members and smiled softly. "However, I expect you to address them with their respectful surnames with the added 'sama' at the end, okay?"

They all nodded in confirmation which earned them a gentle smile of approval from Youko. The calm and collected woman was looking forward into this first meeting with the three schools. She wasn't sure of what to expect of them, other than the fact that it wouldn't be too hard for her to respect them. She held in a sigh, knowing that she'd most likely have to share a room with another student. It had already been set up for every single one of them. The only person that she was most worried about was Sachiko. She knew that there was no man in this school but Sachiko valued privacy when it came to strangers. Hopefully, her soeur wouldn't make too much of fuss over it.

"By the way, why do we have to walk?" Sei started to complain, breaking the short silence.

Eriko giggled and patted Sei on the shoulder. "Because, Sei, walking is a good exercise."

"Besides, we are almost there." Youko commented as the Astrea's gate began to reveal itself to the group.

"It seems like there are four people there waiting for us." Sachiko commented softly.

The dark blue hair beauty was right. There were, indeed, four people waiting for them at the top of the gate. The group didn't make it look like they were in a hurry to get there, however. They were walking towards them in their own pace. Although Yoshino was already too excited about wanting to see these four girls face to face, as if she wanted to compare them with her Onee-sama, Rei. It turned out that she didn't need to hurry, not when they were just several steps away. When the group reached their destination, both of the parties exchanged their respectful bow before Shizuma stepped forward to welcome them.

"Good day to you all, and welcome to our schools. My name is Hanazono Shizuma. I am the Etoile of the school and currently studying under St Miator." The silver-haired beauty then turned to her right where her best friend was standing, giving a small hand gesture towards her. "This is Rokujou Miyuki, the Student Council President of St Miator." Then to two girls on her left. "This is Toumori Shion, the Student Council President of St Spica and next to her is Minamoto Chikaru, the Student Council President of St Lulim."

The three said Student Council Presidents bowed respectively at the Yumayurikai group, and when they looked up only Chikaru was offering them a warm smile, while the other two held a stern expression.

"I hope that you will enjoy your stay here and if there are any issues regarding to the school or your hospitality, please do not hesitate to talk to us." Shizuma said softly, offering them a warm welcoming smile that she knew was fake. In truth, she didn't really want to perform this take for she knew Miyuki could have done it for her anyway.

Youko stepped up between Eriko and Sei, smiling at the four girls in front of her gently. "Thank you for welcoming us, although it would be fine if you all didn't go out of your way to wait for us here."

Chikaru giggled and shook her head. "Oh no, it's not trouble at all. In fact, we are very eager to meet all of you."

Because of Chikaru's carefree and easy-going nature, the Yumayurikai group felt somewhat comfortable under Chikaru's presence. The younger Lilian students knew that they could easily make friends with Chikaru, even if they might not be attending the same school.

Youko nodded, a smile still intact as Eriko and Sei both gave out their own smile in thanks. "I would like to introduce myself. My name is Mizuno Youko, Rosa Chinensis of St Lilian Girls' High School. This is my soeur, Rosa Chinensis en bouton, Ogasawara Sachiko and her petite soeur, Fukuzawa Yumi."

Both Sachiko and Yumi bowed their head. "It is a pleasure to meet you all."

Eriko took the queue to introduce her Yellow Rose family. "My name is Torii Eriko. I am Rosa Foetida of St Lilian Girls' High. And this is my Rosa Foetida en bouton, Hasekura Rei and her petite soeur, Shimazu Yoshino." And even though she would like to add more about Yoshino just to stir the girl up, she held her tongue with a simple smile.

Both of the girls bowed, repeating what Sachiko and Yumi had said earlier. Shion was watching the Yellow Rose with expectation in her eyes. Just by a brief look at Rei, she knew that Rei would excel any kind of sport club that she wishes to choose. That also made her wonders if Rei was a part of any club back in Lilian.

Lastly, it was Sei's turn to introduce herself and, knowing her, she liked to go out with bang. Unfortunately, she had to minimize that effect and was willing to settle with a big smile, and a very outgoing attitude. "Hi! My name is Satou Sei and I'm Rosa Gigantea of Lilian Girls' High. This is my soeur, Toudou Shimako, also known as Rosa Gigantea en bouton." She quickly looked at Chikaru, giving the darker haired girl a wink. "And we'd be seeing you a lot, Minamoto-san."

Chikaru blinked, surprise at how outgoing Sei was until she let a giggle escaped her lips. "Of course, we will be seeing each other a lot, Satou-san."

Sei just offered her a big grin, while the rest of the Yumayurikai was already shaking their heads at her mentally. The other three girls from the opposite school was quite surprise as well, judging by the fact that Sei was an outspoken person while her soeur was a quiet and timid girl.

Of course, whatever they said about the whole 'sama' thing had gone out of the window. The sixth graders were addressing one another by their surnames and the honorific of 'san', while the fifth and fourth graders followed the older girls quietly. Yoshino was dying to speak up, but since Rei shot her a look she had to quiet herself down.

The Astrea students led them into the Strawberry Dorm, and watched as the other girls were marveling at the place in awe. Chikaru looked over to Eriko, smiling sweetly. "Unfortunately, we have one room short for one person. And since it has already been assigned who you would be rooming with, I hope that you'd be happy with your stay."

Eriko smiled and shook her head. "I'm very sure that I'd get along with whomever that I'd be rooming with."

"Well then, you'd be rooming with me, Torii-san." Chikaru said happily, clapping her hands together in front of her with a bright smile.

"If we are going to be roommates, we do not need to be this formal, Chikaru-san." Eriko said with her own smile.

"Alright, Eriko-san." Chikaru happily corrected herself before turning to face the other Lilian's girls. "Satou-san and Mizuno-san will be rooming together. Ogasawara-san has a room for herself as per requested from her family. Hasekura-san and Shizamu-san will be rooming together and Toudou-san and Fukuzawa-san will be rooming together. If you don't like those arrangements, I'm sure we can try and change it around."

As much as she wanted to be Sachiko's roommate, Yumi couldn't help but shook her head. "I'm happy with the arrangement, Minamoto-sama."

Chikaru blinked, clearly confused as to why she was being address as 'sama' when she knew she hadn't earned it yet. However, she smiled and shook her head gently at the younger girl. "Well, since we are all a bunch of formal people, let's try not to be that formal since I know we will get to know each other in the upcoming months."

Sei chuckled before grinning, nodding her head enthusiastically. "I agreed! Let's just drop the 'sama' and just be friends!"

Youko sighed. "Sei…"

Sei quickly turned to Youko, her grin still intact. "What? Objection?"

Youko shook her head, already felt that she had lost an argument with Sei without her having to start it. "No, I've got no objection at all."

"So it's settled!" Sei declared enthusiastically much to the other three girls' surprise. Chikaru found it quite amusing for she couldn't stop giggling at Sei's display.

Shizuma's eyes were soon drifted over to Yumi. The girl's face held so much innocence just as Nagisa's face did. However, as soon as her eyes were on Yumi, Sachiko's eyes were immediately on her. The said girl gave her a hard stare, and Shizuma was too amused to back down. It looked like Yumi had already been taken by Sachiko, and since she had no interest in Yumi, it would be quite interesting to see Sachiko's reaction when she was close to her. Perhaps this wasn't just some dull exchange program. Perhaps she could use this exchange program to entertain herself. Sachiko's reaction had already been chosen as her first entertainment.


	4. Chapter 4

**Four**

Everyone was anticipating to look at these new exchange students at dinner that night. The whole dining hall was filled with talks about the new exchange students, only a few of them were minding their own business. One of which was Ohtori Amane. She wasn't too concern about the buzz that was going on in the dining hall at the moment. Then again, she wasn't too concern about anything but trying not to draw much attention to herself. She tried to tune out the conversations that the other girls were having, but they were too loud for her not to hear a glimpse of them. Apparently, Spica would be receiving three students from the exchange program. And also, one of the three students seemed to rival with her because of her athletic built.

"I think her name is Rayne." One girl said excitedly.

"No, her name is Rei." Another girl said with much enthusiasm.

Amane let out a sigh, knowing that no matter how hard she tried to block them out, she wouldn't be able to do so. Sure, she loved her Spica students, but there were times that she wished they could be quiet and wait patiently as she was.

Suzumi Tamao was observing everyone at the dining hall with interest sparkling in her eyes. She had heard that there would be three students joining Miator, the problem was she didn't know how many students from St Lilian Girls' High School would be joining Astrea's Schools. She also heard that there would be two exchange students joining Lulim, and three joining Spica. With all these rumors without no proof of how many students Astrea would be getting, she couldn't make a 100% guess of how many exchange students that Miator would be receiving.

The blue-haired girl turned to look over at her new roommate and love interest, watching the red-haired girl practically jumping in her seat in excitement. Nagisa's eyes were sparkling in excitement as they glanced around the room. She didn't know if her arrival had such effect such as the exchange students' arrival, but for her to be a part of the excitement was a new experience for her at the Strawberry Dorm. She was, along with the rest of the students at the dining hall, surprised by the fact that the Etoile and the three Student Council Presidents weren't there. It was as if they were having a secret meeting with these exchange students that the rest of the three schools would be the last to know.

"Tamao-chan! Tamao-chan!" Nagisa softly called out to her roommate.

Tamao giggled at her friend's excitement. "Yes, Nagisa-chan?"

"Do you know who they are?" Nagisa asked curiously. When Tamao shook her head she pouted. She was hoping that her roommate would know. "Really? You don't know?"

Tamao nodded. "Yes, I don't know who they are. I would love to know but under some circumstances, I haven't seen Rokujou-sama around today."

Just as she finished her respond to her friend, Shizuma entered the room with the other three Student Council Presidents. Everyone in the room immediately stopped talking and indiscreetly faced the entrance door. Shizuma silently chuckle to herself at the reaction at their entrance. This wasn't all new to her at all. This was to be expected from everyone. They were like kittens, always curious about new things that may or may not concern them. At least they were pretty to look at, in Shizuma's point of view.

Shizuma proceed to walk to the front of the room, knowing that all eyes would be on the eight students that were following her and the Student Council Presidents. Unfortunately though, it was her job to introduce the eight exchange students to the whole Astrea schools, alone. All the three Student Council Presidents already went to their seats, and she knew that Shion's and Miyuki's eyes were on her. While Miyuki was watching to see if she could perform the task right, Shion was merely watching to see if Shizuma would slip up. Shizuma inwardly sighed, knowing that there was no stop in Spica and Miator rivalry.

She stopped in front of the dining hall, and after clearing her throat to get everyone attention, she smiled and started introducing the new eight exchange students from St Lilian Girls' High School. Once she introduced them to the rest of the school, she led them to their respectable seats at the dining table. The Roses were glad that they would be able to sit next to each other, but only under their assigned schools. Shizuma had fun watching Sachiko's expression when she saw the younger girl was feeling uncomfortable. She did wonder if Yumi wasn't there, would Sachiko even give her a glance. She didn't mind that she had already caught Sei's attention, since she already knew that Chikaru had also caught Sei's attention too. The rest of the quiet ones just keep to themselves, and if she wasn't mistakenly, Shizamu Yoshino would be quite interesting to observe closely.

The clock stroke and it was time for her to say the prayer before the meal. Everyone all clasped their hands together, their heads bowed as their eyes closed. Shizuma ran through the prayer for what seemed to be hundred times ever since she became an Etoile. Then again, it was to be expected from her. This was one of her duties after all.

After dinner, everyone had gathered around the Roses family when they decided to go to the lounge. The three sixth graders had no problem keeping up with all the questions and interacting with the females that were gathering around them. Yoshino seemed to be scaring most of the females away when she saw them gawking at Rei. The latter didn't seem to mind, not when she was oblivious to the fact that she was gaining a little bit of fan. All the girls were very interested in Shimako because of her beauty and elegance that she was giving up. Yet, it only made it quite difficult for them to approach her when she looked so serene. Yumi, on the other hand, was getting bombarded with compliments from both Miator and Lulim girls. She was getting a little uncomfortable but it didn't show through her action. However, she could feel how tense Sachiko was sitting beside her. It was as if Sachiko would to be given the chance to kill without anyone pressing any charges, she would commit a mass murder. Although the quiet and serene side of Sachiko was alluring and captivating, the quiet and fuming side of Sachiko was not. Then again, Yumi would gladly take whatever side that Sachiko would give her.

"Ladies! Ladies! Ladies! We will be seeing each other more so try to relax a little." Sei said with amusement in her tone. Even though she was tired of seeing all these girls around her, which was the first, but it was as if they weren't getting any sort of privacy, which was true.

"Yes, I am sure that we will be crossing these halls quite frequently." Youko said with a polite smile, that seemed to swoon most of the girls in Miator and she admitted, she didn't even know how it did that.

"Can we call you by your titles at your school?" One of the girls asked excitedly.

"Oh can we please? It sounds so cool!" Another girl added.

Eriko chuckled and nodded. "If you wish, we do not mind it at all."

When they all turned to look at the Roses' soeurs, Miyuki and Shion were already standing in front of them with disapproval look on their faces. The girls instantly let out several apologies before they scattered off with their friends. Youko let out a sigh of relief before she turned to look at the two.

"Thank you for saving us. We were wondering when they would leave us to ourselves." She softly spoke.

"Probably never if we didn't decide to intervene." Shion spoke with a sigh. "My apologies, however, I didn't think that Spica's students would act like that."

Eriko giggled and shook her head. "It's understandable. There's no need for apologies for both ends. I'm very sure if the situation was reversed, the Lilian's students would be very interested about you as well."

"I do wonder though, why did Lilian send the whole Lilian's Student Council here?" Miyuki asked curiously.

Youko sighed as Eriko shrugged, though Sei didn't seem to care the least bit. "We do wonder that ourselves."

"Well then, we do hope that you all enjoy your stay. Have a good evening." Miyuki said with a smile. The Yumayurikai said their farewells as well before both Shion and Miyuki left the lounge.

"You know, that Miyuki is quite nice." Sei commented. "And pretty." She later added.

"Everyone's pretty to you, Sei." Eriko said with a roll of her eyes.

Sei laughed and shook her head. "Nope, not everyone. I think Yumi is the prettiest!"

Yumi immediately blushed. "Rosa Gigantea!" She half-shrieked in embarrassment.

Sei turned to look at the younger girl. "What? You want me to prove that? Or rather, show you how pretty you are?" She asked in a flirtatious tone that everyone was quickly to pick up on.

When Yumi was too embarrassed to even respond, Sei took that silent answer as a 'Yes'. And since she did, the blonde hair woman stood up from her seat and went over to Yumi. She was aware of the fact that everyone was watching her, and she knew that Youko was watching her in amusement. Not to mention Eriko as well. So when she made it over to Yumi's side, she immediately wrapped her arms around the younger girl's neck while blowing hot breath against her ear.

"Should I give them a show, my little Yumi?" Sei asked seductively with a wicked grin now spread across her face. She could hear the students in the lounging area gasp, but none of them came from the Yumayurikai. This scene had occurred too much for them to even act surprise, not to mention they did know of her personality.

Yumi, on the other hand, was beetred from head to toes, and she could literally feel her whole face burning up from Sei's action and words. If she was to open her mouth and speak at this moment, she would be stuttering out incoherent words that would urge Sei on even more. So the only thing she could do now was to look down at the floor and pray that Sei would let go off of her already.

"Rosa Gigantea," Sachiko stated coldly. "Please let go off of my petite soeur." She demanded, her eyes were cold as eyes as they were fixed on Sei.

Sei wasn't affected by the cold glare, nonetheless. She was hoping to have this kind of reaction from Sachiko anyway. With Yumi here, she knew that both reactions from both women would make quite a show for her to behold. So with the chuckle that was leaving her parted lips, she let go off of Yumi with her hands up in a surrendering gesture. " Such cold, icy tone, Sachiko." She teased. "It almost sounds like you two are dating."

Sachiko blushed and looked away, trying her best to hide the blush by covering her face with her hair. Youko chuckled at the reaction, while Eriko watched on in amusement. Sachiko soon to recover from her embarrassment and turned to look at Shimako, whom was watching Yumi with a worried expression.

"Shimako." Sachiko spoke softly. The said girl turned to look at her, her eyes silently asking her what Sachiko would need her to do. "Please try to control your Onee-sama once in a while."

Shimako sighed and shook her head. "I believe it is too late for me to control her, Sachiko-sama."

Sei, Youko, Eriko and Yoshino burst out into a fit of giggles. Even though they were in a new school ground, they knew that their Yumayurikai relationship would never change. And poor little Yumi, she was still recovering from the embarrassment that Sei had given her. The girl wouldn't hate Sei though, no one could ever hate Sei. She knew that Sei was a flirty person, but unfortunately for her, Sei only picked her to flirt with.

Chikaru was watching their interaction from her side of the lounge, intrigued by the relationship that they all had. For a student council that big, she was surprise that there was no conflict between them. A smile formed her face, it was definitely time for her to get to know these people better.


	5. Chapter 5

**Five**

The next day was just like any ordinary day in Astrea, except for the new exchange students. They had already been informed about the curfew and the breakfast and dinner hours, including their class schedules. However, they didn't expect to take a little bit longer than necessary to put on their uniform. The sixth and fifth graders were quick to learn the trick, but the fourth graders were still struggling. Yumi and Yoshino struggled the most, and even though Eriko took it as her chance to tease her, the older girl still helped out. Shimako tried to help Yumi but Sachiko had already turned up before she could her offer her hand. She bid the two girls farewell when Sei showed up. However, Sei was amused by the blush that greeted her when Shimako looked at her. Sei had never looked innocent, yet the Lulim's checkered uniform seemed to bring that innocent side of Sei out, although the girl had little to none.

Sachiko sighed as she ran a brush through Yumi's hair, taking a great delight in grooming her petite soeur. "If I knew that there would be roommates, I would have requested you to be my roommate, Yumi."

The younger girl blushed upon hearing the words that been uttered out from her Onee-sama's soft lips. "Onee-sama…"

They fell into a comfortable silence as Sachiko continued to work on Yumi's hair. Once she finished, she ushered the girl to stand up and turn to face her. She checked Yumi's uniform one last time and she couldn't help but pretended to fix Yumi's tie even though it wasn't crooked. Once she was finished, she took a step back and smiled down gently at her.

"You look good, Yumi."

The younger girl blushed as she smiled up at her in thanks. "Thank you, Onee-sama."

There was a knock at the door, and when they went to get the door Youko was there, along with three students from Miator, one of which was Miyuki. Sachiko and Yumi greeted them with a bow, in which one of the girls immediately copied. That girl was no other than Nagisa.

"I guess there's no need to be such formal, right, Miyuki-san?" Youko said with a small giggle.

Miyuki turned to look at her classmate and nodded. "Yes, you're right, Youko-san. Should we start heading towards the dining room now?"

Youko nodded and started to head over to the dining hall with Miyuki. It was a little bit awkward and the girls could feel it. Sachiko, on the other hand, didn't seem to mind about the uncomfortable silence even though Miyuki and Youko would be the one talking to one another. It seemed like Youko had taken an interest in Miyuki's duties as Student Council of Miator. The two talked about nothing but St Miator's Student Council's work comparing to St Lilian's Student Council work. It was as if Youko was in a tourist destination while Sachiko and Yumi just followed along.

Nagisa decided to break the tension so she turned to the two new girls with a bright smile. "Hey! My name is Aoi Nagisa, it's a pleasure to have you with us!" She said with as much enthusiasm added as possible.

Sachiko turned and flashed Nagisa her charming smile and watched as the girl's cheek flushed a nice scarlet pink. "It is a pleasure to meet you too, Nagisa." She said softly.

Nagisa was in awe at how soft Sachiko's voice was, and she immediately thought of Shizuma and started comparing their voices. In the end, Shizuma's voice turned to be a tad bit softer since she couldn't even get the silver-haired beauty out of her mind.

"Um…Nagisa-san? Are you still in there?" Yumi asked as she waved her hand in front of Nagisa's daydream face.

The red head blinked and started blushing furiously. "Yeah, yeah, I'm still here."

Miyuki glanced over at the group and chuckled before turning her attention back to Youko. "I do hope that you all enjoy your stay. And also, you are welcome to join any club activities in Miator."

Youko smiled and nodded. "I will keep that in mind."

Yumi giggled at Nagisa's reaction as she felt a good feeling that Nagisa would be the next person to be in her friend list. "My name is Fukuzawa Yumi. It's nice to meet you too, Nagisa-san."

Since she didn't like anyone to talk for her, Sachiko smiled gently at both Nagisa and Tamao. "I am Ogasawara Sachiko, it is a pleasure to meet the two of you."

"My name is Suzumi Tamao, it is a pleasure to meet you too, Sachiko-sama and Yumi-san." Tamao said as she gazed at the raven haired beauty. It looked like that Tamao was growing a little interest in Sachiko. The raven-haired beauty was more formal and soft spoken than she had thought Sachiko would be. Plus, she had never seen anyone that could wear the St Miator's uniform in such grace and elegant that would even put the uniform to shame.

Sachiko, feeling that someone was looking at her, turned towards Tamao's direction and was greeted with twinkling sapphire eyes. That answered everything and she sighed silently to herself, knowing that soon enough she would gain another fan girl. And Tamao, having Sachiko caught her staring at her, quickly turned away with a light blush. Yumi and Nagisa were totally oblivious to the small interaction between them, especially when they were engaged in a much better subject that they seemed to love; sweets.

"Whoa! You can make strawberry tarts, Yumi-san?" Nagisa said with excitement sparkling in her brown orbs.

Yumi giggled and nodded. "Yes! Would you like to have some, Nagisa-san?"

"Ooh yes! Let's make them together!"

Both girls let out a joyous giggle as it didn't take them too long to become friends. While they were indulging themselves with food talk, they didn't notice that everyone around them was watching them in amusement. Miyuki was relieved to see that at least one of the Lilian's students would feel _very_ welcome thanks to Nagisa. And with that note, she reminded herself to thank Nagisa later.

Once they all had their breakfast and set off to their classes, Yumi was glad that she was placed in with Tamao and Nagisa's class. During lunch hour, Sachiko had ushered Yumi to go and interact with her new friends. Rei and Sei did the same, and since Shimako and Yoshino kept to themselves, they followed Yumi towards where Tamao and Nagisa were sitting. Both of the two girls looked up when they saw Yumi and her Yumayurikai came over, and Nagisa offered a brilliant smile.

"Hey Yumi-san! And…um…" She tried her best to remember the other girls' name from the introduction at the dining hall last night. Unfortunately, since her memory was a bit like a peanut, she forgot the names and chuckled nervously to herself. "Hi! My name is Aoi Nagisa! It's nice to meet the two of you!"

Both Yoshino and Shimako giggled at Nagisa's enthusiasm and smiled back. "My name is Toudou Shimako and this is Shizamu Yoshino. It is nice to meet you as well, Nagisa-san."

"Likewise, Nagisa-san, and…" Yoshino turned to look at Tamao, smiling gently at her.

Tamao smiled back. "I'm Suzumi Tamao, it is a pleasure to meet you the two of you."

Both Tamao and Nagisa made room for the three girls, and soon enough Nagisa had befriend both Yoshino and Shimako without much of an effort. Tamao just watched on in amusement as her roommate interacted so freely with Yumi and the others. However, her attention soon was drifted towards Shimako, watching her silently as if she was trying to figure out the puzzle that Shimako had put up. As if sensing that someone was watching her, Shimako turned and met Tamao's gaze. She smiled and turned her attention to Tamao for a little while.

"Are you alright, Tamao-san?" She asked worriedly.

Tamao blinked and shook her head, before offering a smile of reassurance. "Yes, I am fine. Thank you for your concern, Shimako-san."

"It's nothing really." Shimako replied softly. Tamao felt like she needed to leave Shimako alone because of the serene aura that Shimako was giving off. However, she shook away that feeling and decided to get to know the girl better. So she started to ask about Shimako's interest and skills, while the other three were engaged in some kind of a tea party conversation.

The other Roses' members observed their younger members interacted with the students of Miator and smiled to themselves.

"That Nagisa-chan is quite something. Don't you agree, Sachiko?" Youko asked.

Sachiko offered a small smile and nodded, when her eyes were solely on her Yumi. "Yes, she is quite friendly and out-going, just like Yumi."

Sei chuckled. "Beware, Sachiko. Nagisa-chan might take Yumi-chan away!"

Sachiko immediately averted her eyes from the younger girls as she raised her cup of tea to her lips. "Don't say such things, Rosa Gigantea."

"What's the other girl's name? The one talking with Shimako." Eriko asked curiously.

"That's Suzumi Tamao." Youko answered. "She seems a little infatuated with Sachiko this morning."

Sachiko blushed lightly, not knowing that Youko had caught the little exchange between Tamao and her. "Onee-sama…" She complained quietly which caused the other Yumayurikai members to laugh.

"So what do you know about the school so far?" Youko asked all business-like.

Rei was the first to answer. "St Spica seemed to _worship_ a girl by the name of Ohtori Amane. She is in my class, and she seems to be exactly like Sachiko, just with shorter hair and more masculine."

"Well," Eriko chimed in. "St Spica specializes in sports so I'm not surprise if half of the students of Spica have the masculine features."

Youko chuckled. "True. Besides, we do have Rei as a masculine figure for our group."

Rei blushed and looked down, pretended that she was busy with her cup of tea. Sei chuckled at the reaction and turned to look over at Yumi's new group of friend. She studied Tamao for a short while before deciding that it wouldn't be fun to tease her. Although, it would be fun to tease Nagisa but she wasn't going to go out of her way to do just that.

"Sei, what about St Lulim?" Youko asked.

Sei shrugged and leaned back against her seat. "Lulim is really a carefree school. There was no hassle and I'm glad that I'm in Chikaru's class."

Eriko sighed and shook her head. "When will you learning flirting won't get you anywhere?"

Sei blinked before bursting out into laughter. "That's a good one, Eriko!"

At that laugh, Yumi, Yoshino and Shimako halted their conversations with the other two Miator's students to turn and look at Sei in curiosity. Yoshino pondered for a while of what might made Sei burst into laughter, but she came up with nothing. Yumi pouted a little as she tried to think, but she, too, came up with nothing. So they both turned to Shimako with curiosity in their eyes.

"What is Rosa Gigantea laughing about, do you know, Shimako?"

Shimako sighed and shook her head gently. "Onee-sama is probably laughing at the fact that she finds a new victim for her teasing."

"New victim?" Nagisa asked in puzzlement.

Yoshino grinned before grabbing Yumi. "You see here, Nagisa-san? This is Rosa Gigantea's first victim!" She answered with so much joy that got Yumi to blush furiously.

"Yoshino-san! I'm not her victim!" Yumi tried to deny it but it only given Yoshino and Shimako a giggle.

"So, who's this new victim?" Tamao asked curiously.

Shimako thought for a moment before sighing. "Chikaru-sama."


	6. Chapter 6

**Six**

Everyone was off to their club activities that day, leaving the Roses families to wonder whether they should join a club or not. At least there would be something to do than hanging around the Strawberry Dorm's lounge. Then again, there was a piano there so Sachiko could always play some songs for them. The Red Roses didn't really mind whether they should join a club or not, there wasn't much of a hassle about it. The Yellow Roses, especially Rei, wanted to join a club where they could enjoy their time in Astrea. Sei had already found a club where she wanted to join, and of course she was going to drag Shimako along just so her petite soeur could be a little bit more outgoing. That particular club was run by Minamoto Chikaru and Sei couldn't be more than happy to join it when Chikaru had asked her. So that was where the White Rose family was hanging out, in Chikaru's club's room.

"Everyone, please settle down so I can introduce you all to our new club members." Chikaru said softly as she smiled at her first years; Kizuna, Remon and Kagome.

The three first years all let out a confirmation before settling down on their seats. Their eyes immediately went straight over to Sei and Shimako whom were standing there in a little bit of shock. They were expecting the club to be full of people, not just only four people including Chikaru. It was then that they began to wonder what kind of club that Chikaru was running.

"This is Satou Sei and Toudou Shimako, our two new Lulim's students and club members. Please, give them a warm welcome!" Chikaru said with such happiness in her tone that the three youngsters let out a full smile, except for Kagome whom was looking up at Shimako in wonder.

Kizuna was the first to stand up and introduced herself. "I'm Hyuuga Kizuna! It's a pleasure to meet you!"

Followed by Remon. "I'm Natsume Remon. It is a pleasure to meet you."

The two girls then turned to face Kagome, waiting for the quiet girl to introduce herself. Instead of just standing up and introduce herself like the other two girls did, Kagome went over to where Sei and Shimako was standing and looked up at the both of them in silent. Sei was looking a tad bit nervous at Kagome's gaze, wondering what in the world that she had gotten herself into. Shimako was different. She was looking at Kagome as if she was studying her, trying to piece in the puzzle that Kagome had laid out in front of her eyes. Then, with a small smile, Kagome lifted her teddy bear's hand and offered it to Shimako.

"Byakudan Kagome…" The younger said softly and quietly, in which Shimako smiled down gently at her and carefully took the teddy bear's outreach hand and gave it a light shake.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Kagome-chan." Shimako said softly and at that moment, Sei had no idea what the heck was going on. So to break the tension, she turned to face Chikaru who was looking at both Shimako and Kagome in adoration.

"So, Chikaru, what is club about?" Sei asked curiously as she looked around the room. It was just like any ordinary classroom, but it was just a tad bit smaller and there wasn't any kind of decoration.

"It depends on what you want this club to be, Sei-san." Chikaru replied with a gentle smile, though Sei could hear a tint of challenge in the girl's voice.

When Shimako turned to look at her Onee-sama, she couldn't help but felt like Sei was going to have one outrageous idea for this club, one that she wasn't sure she should participate in or not. She was now beginning to worry that the current Rosa Gigantea would take whatever idea that was forming in her head a little bit too far.

"How about…Flirting Club!" Sei asked with her traditional smirk. Chikaru wasn't surprised at all, not when she had been observing how Sei interacting with the other students, especially Yumi. She knew that Sei was a flirt, but she didn't know that the taller girl would actually suggest something that would suit her personality so much.

"Flirting Club?" Chikaru asked, faking her surprise.

"Yes! Flirting Club!" Sei repeated with a huge grin. If Shimako could predicted what was going to happen before Sei suggested such an outrageous idea, she would place her hand over her Onee-sama's mouth so that the latter wouldn't be able to say anything.

"Would you mind elaborate a bit more about this club, Sei-san?" Chikaru asked politely when she already had an idea of what this club was about.

"Oho, well, let's set this off first with a little bit of a game," Sei said, her eyes sparkling with mirth. "First, you have to make as many girls in Astrea squeal in either surprise or embarrassment as you could. The more numbers you have, the more chance you'd get to be the winner and pick one member in the club to go on a date with you. There is no rule to this, so you can surprise anyone as you'd like."

Shimako sighed quietly. She knew that Sei wouldn't mind if she didn't participate. It was just ridiculous to even think that she, herself, could even make someone squeal in surprise. She could try it but that sort of thing wasn't her. She would be acting as someone else, not at herself, and that was one thing that she didn't like. It was then that she felt a light tug at her skirt, so she turned to face Kagome as the girl looked at her in curiosity.

"Would you like to be the judge?" The little girl asked in her soft, tiny voice.

Shimako blinked, not quite understanding what the girl was asking. "Judge?"

Kagome nodded and it was then that Chikaru giggled. Shimako turned to look at the older dark-haired girl, seemingly confused at why this situation was funny. "Shimako, I know that you and Kagome won't be participating in this little game that Sei-san had planned out for us. So, it is only fair that you two would become the judge to see this game through. You two can each observe two participants," Chikaru then paused as she turned to face Sei, a challenging smile adorning her lips. "Since it is Monday, should we make the deadline to be at the end of Friday?"

Sei grinned. "Of course! This should be quite interesting."

At the end of the club activities, both the White Roses were on their way towards the dorm when Sei heard her petite soeur's sigh. Out of curiosity, she placed her hand on the shorter girl's shoulder to grab her attention. Shimako felt the light touch and looked up at her Onee-sama. There was no words escaping each of their lips, and because of the bond that they had, their eyes were communicating with each other. If anyone was to witness the way that the two were looking at each other, they might misunderstand that the White Roses' relationship was more than just soeurs.

"You are not happy with this game." Sei stated. The younger's sigh was enough of an answer for her.

"The game is a little…childish." Shimako answered softly as she turned to face the road ahead. "I know that you would win and take Chikaru-sama out on a date. However, shouldn't you be straight forward and ask her?"

Sei chuckled as she patted Shimako's shoulder. "Then that wouldn't be fun. Besides, I just want to hear her squeal."

"Onee-sama." Shimako sighed. Even though she disapproved of the game, deep down inside she was happy that Sei would be interacting with the other students. However, this interaction wasn't really a proper one.

Once the White Roses entered the dorm, they heard a surprise squeal inside the lounging area. Curious, they quickly went over to the lounge only to narrowly avoid Kizuna as the younger girl ran out, following by a rather furious looking Remon. Kizuna was giggling while she was being chased by her friend and roommate, Remon. The latter girl was too embarrassed and a tad angry at her friend's outrageous attempt of making her squeal. At the scene, Sei chuckled and turned to wink at Shimako.

"See? They're having fun and it's only getting started."

They soon found their seats with the other Roses members. Youko and Eriko were giggling from the scene earlier while Sachiko seemed to be protecting Yumi from any kind of embarrassing event that would to bestow on her. Since it was Yumi, she knew that the younger girl would fall into this sort of event too easily. Sei noticed the look on Sachiko and couldn't help but chuckle at the raven-haired beauty. The said girl heard the chuckle and quickly turned to look at Sei, only to realize that this whole thing was her idea.

"You!" Sachiko exclaimed quietly. "I knew you had something to do with this!"

Sei couldn't help herself but burst out laughing. "Sachiko, Sachiko, loosen up a little bit will you? None of my club members would be able to get you squealing like that, trust me on this one." Sei soon sobered up as she turned to look at Yumi, grinning mischievously. "Yumi, on the other hand…"

"Rosa Gigantea." Sachiko said as she shot the addressed woman with a glare. "Yumi is not your plaything."

Before Sei could answer to Sachiko's statement, a soft voice interrupted her. "Yumi is not whose plaything?"

The Yumayurikai turned to face the silver-haired beauty as she stood there with all her elegance. Her gaze quickly fell on Yumi which made the younger girl blush and looked away from her. Shizuma giggled quietly to herself before she turned to the one that she was addressing to; Sachiko.

Sachiko gave Shizuma a hard stare before she turned away from the woman's gaze. "It is nothing of importance, Etoile-sama."

"Oh, but I am quite interested." Shizuma insisted as she smiled down at Sachiko.

Sei chuckled at the scene. "Well you see, Shizuma, Yumi here makes a lot of cute noises such as 'Ohs' 'Ahs' and 'Ehs'. It is one of my duties to get it out of her once a day, or so."

"Rosa Gigantea!" Yumi exclaimed as her cheeks flushed in a delicate pink. She was embarrassed, yes, but she held no ill-feelings towards the older girl. After all, it was Sei that had helped her with her relationship with Sachiko.

Shizuma chuckled at the scene before her eyes casted down on Sachiko once more. There was a reason for her to be where she was right now, and that reason would give Sachiko a reaction that she wanted to see. So she turned her gaze over to Yumi, her lips curling up into one of her soft smiles as she addressed the younger girl. "Yumi, can I ask a favor from you?"

At the question, Sachiko immediately tuned out the noises around her and focused her hearing on Yumi's and Shizuma's conversation only. She was curious to what this favor that Shizuma was asking for. In addition to that, she wanted to see if the favor wasn't too outrageous that it would make Yumi embarrassed out of her skin.

"O-of course, Etoile-sama!" Yumi answered as she felt a little nervous under Shizuma's gaze. She felt as if she was meeting Sachiko for the first time once again, though this time was different. It wasn't Sachiko that she was talking to, it was Shizuma. And she couldn't help but feel as if she was going to be in trouble later.

"Nagisa has been restless because of her studies, even though I have told her to take it easy." Shizuma let out a soft sigh. She couldn't feel what the red-head was going through, because she had never been in that kind of position before. It wasn't even exams time yet Nagisa was working just a little bit too hard on her French. She had offered her help for the girl, but she was politely rejected.

Sensing that Shizuma was concerned for her new friend, Nagisa, Yumi perked up straight from her seat and started to worry about her friend as well. "What is she so focusing on that got her to be like this, Etoile-sama?"

"French." Shizuma responded. "She started in the middle and she is struggling with it. It's not yet the time for finals, though she seems determine to catch up."

Yumi gave it some thought before realizing what Shizuma wanted her to do. She smiled cheerfully, having the chance to help Nagisa out was one of the things she wanted to do ever since she saw the girl almost drifting off in class this morning. "Yes! I'll help out as much as I can!"

Shizuma let out a sigh in relief before smiling down at the girl in thanks. "Thank you, Yumi." Then she turned to face the rest of the Yumayurikai's members as she gave them a gentle smile. "I'll see all of you when dinner comes. Have a good day."

"Have a good day, Etoile-sama."

"Have a good day, Shizuma."

When Shizuma turned to leave, she caught sight of Sachiko giving her quite a cold stare. She chuckled before patting the side of the seat that Sachiko was sitting on. "Sachiko." She said lightly, though her voice was filled with amusement. Then she turned to leave the Yumayurikai alone as she made her way towards Miyuki. Of course, Miyuki had a small frown on her face and she could clearly guess the reason behind it.

"Is Yumi another pretty girl you are after?" Miyuki asked quietly yet disappointedly.

Shizuma let out a small chuckle as she shook her head. "Of course not, I just want to see her _Onee-sama_'s reaction when I interact with her."

Miyuki relaxed her stance and sighed as she shook her head. "One day, your actions will come around and bite you in the ass, Shizuma."

Shizuma let out another chuckle in amusement. "I will wait for that day to come with my utmost enthusiasm.


	7. Chapter 7

**Seven**

It had been two days after Sei's little game been played out. There were a lot of surprised squeals that was happening around the campus. The Student Council Presidents couldn't do a thing about it, not when one of the Student Council Presidents was involved in the matter. So they had no choice but to sit back and watched the childishness playing out before their eyes. Secretly they wanted to join in the fun that the girls were having. They wanted to feel like a teenager. They wanted to feel free. However, because of their upbringing they couldn't just let loose like that. They had their priorities even though those priorities weren't even their own. They wanted to best for their own respectable schools, and they never seemed to ask more than that. As long as their students were happy, they knew they could graduate from Astrea Hill with ease.

So far neither Sei nor Chikaru had captured Nagisa's cute scream. The red head was hiding out at a place that was strictly for the Etoile and her assistants only; The Greenhouse. Shizuma didn't mind about it, not when she could use a little bit of help from the younger girl. Plus, she was thoroughly happy to be close to the other girl without having the younger girl feeling nervous around her. Being around Nagisa was relaxing and her assistants could see the slightest of change in her demeanor. It was a shame that Shizuma couldn't see it in herself, not when she couldn't let go off of her haunted past.

Nagisa was happily preparing the pot before she reached across from Shizuma to get the flower that she needed. It was then that she suddenly realized that she was being a little rude so she quickly withdrew her hand, though it didn't go unnoticed by the taller girl. Shizuma smiled before she grabbed the flower that Nagisa was reaching for and offered it to her.

"Here." She said softly.

Nagisa took it into her hand and bowed. "Thank you, Etoile-sama." She replied softly.

Shizuma only smiled softly back at the girl as the latter went back to gently placing the flower into the dirt. It was then that the silver-haired beauty noticed the tiny bit of dirt that was on the younger girl's face. She turned her body to face Nagisa as she lifted her white apron and reached across the girl's face, gently wiping the dirt away much to her assistants' surprise and Nagisa's shock. The act was gentle and caring to the point that from her assistants' point of view the two looked like lovers. The way that Shizuma so gently and adoringly gazed at the girl while the younger girl had the cutest blush adorning her face was enough to inform them that Shizuma was changing.

At another part of the campus, Yumi was trying her best to keep an eye out for Sei. She knew that Sei was in the lead of her Club's activity thanked to Shimako informing her, but she didn't want to be in that list of victims. She knew that Sei was looking for her while having her fun with the other fourth and fifth graders, and even at the most, sixth graders as well. Eriko was hard to crack and Sei didn't even bother going after her. That didn't stop Chikaru, however, since she had been trying her hardest to get Eriko even giving out a little squeak. Unfortunately for Youko, she was under Sei's list much Sachiko's surprise. She didn't know that her Onee-sama had it in her to be that surprised. Sei must have planned out something that was much unexpected that got Youko to squeal like that. It was Youko's capture that got Yumi to worry about her own when she couldn't rely on Sachiko to protect her forever. So she took it to herself to try her best not to get caught.

Sachiko had entered a club that she had grown to be interested in; the Literature Club. Tamao didn't mind having the girl in her club, not when she just gotten a great excuse to observe the raven-haired beauty a little more. While observing Shizuma would have been a little bit more interested, but the Etoile was always around Nagisa and there was something about the older girl that she didn't trust. However, it was different for Sachiko because the taller girl didn't give off anything but her formality and irritation towards anyone that was remotely interested in her Yumi. Tamao thought that it was cute that Sachiko would feel possessive of Yumi, and because of that Sachiko had charmed the younger girl without much of an effort. Sure, she still had a 'Nagisa-Obssession' but with her newly profound obsession with Sachiko, she couldn't pass up this chance.

"Ogasawara-san, welcome to our club," The Literature Club President said warmly. "I hope that you'd come to enjoy it as much as we do."

Sachiko offered a soft smile and nodded her head. "Thank you for the welcome, and I'm sure that I would enjoy my stay here."

Tamao observed Sachiko's posture and the polite sound of her tone enough to make her want to obsess over Sachiko a bit more than intended. She knew nothing about her and she had a feeling that it would be harder than she'd thought to even get a little bit of information from the girl in subject. She inwardly sigh, knowing that she had little to no chance of getting the raven-haired beauty to open up to her even just a little bit.

Sachiko, on the other hand, was worrying about Yumi as usual. She knew that the end date of this preposterous game was on Friday, and she also knew that Sei hadn't got Yumi yet because of her always around her. Now that she had joined this club because Yumi had encouraged her to, she couldn't stop herself but to worry about a certain pigtailed girl. She could trust Yumi with Sei if this game didn't even exist in the first place. She knew that Sei wouldn't do anything to Yumi because of the fact that she could remotely kill her, and Yumi would be too embarrassed to be around Sei in which the blonde couldn't even handle. So while she sat at the table while half listening to what was going on around her, her mind was on Yumi at that time.

The latter was trying her hardest to find a place that Sei would never think of she'd be. They didn't have a tour around the place, but at least they did explore around a bit. She didn't quite know that there would be a greenhouse located not far from the Strawberry Dorm. So if she didn't even know about this place, there was no chance that Sei would know as well. So without much further thought she entered the place, and didn't expect that the greenhouse was totally and completely different from the one back at Lilian. This greenhouse was well-cared for, and it held so many types of flowers that she couldn't begin to name all of them. However, in a mist of admiring the flowers in the greenhouse, she didn't notice that it was occupied by two females that were taking their time preparing the flowers and observing her. When she finally felt that someone was watching her, Yumi turned her gaze away from the flowers and turned to look up at the working bench where the two women were. She blushed a nice shade of pink before bowing her head in apologies.

"Umm…E-excuse me for intruding! I-I didn't know that this greenhouse i-is occupied…" She quickly said her apology and when she about to turn and leave, Shizuma softly called out.

"Yumi, wait!"

The said girl halted and turned to look at the sixth grader with confusion in her eyes. She could tell that Shizuma and Nagisa were having their moment so she didn't want to interrupt them. But for Shizuma to call out for her, for Shizuma to want her to stay, was a little unbelievable.

"Etoile-sama?" She asked, her eyes glancing back and forth between Shizuma and Nagisa, feeling guilty that she had to intrude in their privacy like this.

Shizuma turned to look at Nagisa as if asking for her permission to have Yumi joining them. Nagisa smiled in acknowledgement and nodded her head, feeling warmth that Shizuma's smile was giving her as the taller girl turned to face the pigtailed girl.

"Why don't you join us, Yumi? We could use another hand." Shizuma said softly and watched as the said girl looking up at her with that brown orbs filled with confusion. Nevertheless, Yumi gave them a polite smile and nodded her head.

"Yes, I'd be glad to help you, Etoile-sama." She said as she steadily made her way towards the working bench. After Shizuma had given her the white apron, she had put it on and went straight to work.

Shizuma didn't mind the chattering noises coming from Nagisa and Yumi. She found it quite relaxing just to be able to watch and listen to them converse. In a way, Yumi was exactly like Nagisa and yet so much different. She could tell why Sachiko was so attached to this young pigtailed girl. Yumi was full of life and everything she did, she did it with love. If Nagisa didn't capture her attention in the first time that they had met, she knew that Yumi would have captured her attention right there and right then. Fortunately, not even Yumi could replace the place that Nagisa had put herself in her heart.

After fifteen minutes, Shizuma leaned back and let out a soft sigh before turning to the two younger girls that were looking at her in concern. "That's it for today, thank you for helping me out." She said softly, accompanying by a smile.

Both of the girls blushed and shook their heads, muttering 'It's nothing, really' and 'It's my pleasure, Etoile-sama' under their breaths. Shizuma couldn't help but chuckle at the cuteness of the two girls before she removed the apron around her. "If you two don't mind, would you like to accompany me to the front of the Strawberry Dorm?"

Nagisa was quick to give her a positive answer, but Yumi apologetically shook her head. "I'm sorry, Etoile-sama, but I have to go and meet with Onee-sama."

"Ah, Sachiko, I almost forgot that the two of you are soeurs." Shizuma said teasingly in which Nagisa gasped softly.

"You almost forgot, Shizuma-sama?"

The older girl chuckled and waved her hand in a dismissive manner. "It just felt like I'm hanging around two Nagisa at the same time, so I almost forgot that Yumi is Yumi, not Nagisa."

At the comment Nagisa blushed which made the other two girls giggled. However, it didn't take long for Yumi to comprehend what Shizuma had said because she, too, blushed alongside her friend.

"Well, I better be going. Onee-sama is probably waiting for me." Yumi quickly bowed and turned to leave. Well, not before Shizuma stopped her once more.

"Would you send my regard to Sachiko, Yumi?" Shizuma asked, knowing that Yumi would have told Sachiko of their time together whether or not she would ask her to do so. Besides, she knew that the raven-haired beauty would narrow her eyes and focused on the part of her being around Yumi, not Nagisa was with them as well.

Yumi smiled and quickly nodded her head. "Yes, I'll send your regard to her, Etoile-sama." And with that said she was out of the greenhouse, leaving Shizuma to chuckle in amusement while Nagisa looked at her in puzzlement.

"Um…Etoile-sama?" The shorted girl asked in confusion to what was so funny that got the older girl to be so amused.

Shizuma shook her head as the chuckle subsided. "Shall we go, Nagisa?"

The confusion was long gone when the silver-haired beauty had turned to give her another smile that had captured her heart. The shorter girl smiled cheerfully and nodded. "Yes, Shizuma-sama."

Shizuma went to gather up the two bouquets of flowers before ushering Nagisa to follow her. Now that she had another helping hand, minus Yumi since she knew that the poor girl was trying to find a place to hide from Satou Sei, she wouldn't want to let go off of Nagisa's help just yet.


	8. Chapter 8

**Eight**

It was Thursday afternoon, school was over and everyone was hurrying to go back to the Strawberry Dorm and hang out with their friends. They had all been a victim to Chikaru's and Sei's game. They were still a little embarrassed about it, but they were happy that they had come to a small contact of offering Chikaru and Sei their services. In return, they received Chikaru's smiles and a little bit of Sei's time. Youko was watching the event unfold and she could tell that even though she didn't like how Sei was giving all the girls her attention, she couldn't complain about it when her friend and secret crush was having fun. To call it a crush was underrating it. She had fallen in love with the blonde and she didn't know when, although she knew the reason why she did. She held her feelings in as she continued to give her friend the support and love that was needed from her. And even though she wanted to give more, she knew that she was pushing her luck.

It had started raining when she had reached the ground level of St Miator. She had forgotten her umbrella in her room and she clearly didn't want to walk in the rain. She didn't want to get soaked in general. She sighed and looked out at the gloomy sky. The sky wasn't going to stop any time soon and it would look like she would have to run in the rain. As she was about to move forward into the rain, a dark blue umbrella had hovered above her head, surprising her. She turned to the hand that was holding it out and smiled softly when she noticed who it was.

"Thank you, Miyuki-san. You've saved me."

The said girl just smiled at her, glad to help a friend out and, of course, a Miator's student out. There was something behind Youko that she was interested to find out. Even though she wasn't a meddler like Youko in which she had learned just by observing her, she found herself wanting to know all the things about her. Youko's interest in St Miator's Student Council was one of the excuses for her to get to know the other girl more. What she didn't know was the fact that her curiosity had led her to have some kind of feelings for the other girl. Maybe it was because she always held her feelings as if they were non-existence to her.

"It's not a problem, Youko-san. It is one of my duties as a Student Council President after all." She replied softly.

The two girls moved out from the shelter of St Miator's Academy and into the pouring rain. The umbrella was the only thing that was keeping them from getting wet, and it was the only thing that was pushing them together because of its medium size. The umbrella wasn't too big nor it was too small, it was just the right size for two people to share under it. Since they were mature about such little things, they didn't mind that their shoulders were slightly touching. Youko's mind began to drift to Sei once more while Miyuki's mind was on Youko and her mysterious demeanor. They were walking in a comfortable silence and neither of them would want to break it. However, due to Miyuki's curiosity and concern, she wanted to know that the Red Rose family was happy with their stay here so far.

"Excuse me, Youk-san, I'm concern about your hospitality here at Astrea Hill." Miyuki softly said that had interrupted Youko's trail of thoughts. The latter didn't mind about it. In fact, she was glad that Miyuki had interrupted her because she didn't know when she would stop thinking about Sei. Having Sei as her roommate was a tad too much but she wasn't complaining about it either.

Youko turned and offered Miyuki a smile of gratitude. "Thank you, Miyuki-san, you are most kind." At the praise Miyuki couldn't help but blush, much to the other girl's delight. "The Yumayurikai and I are enjoying our stay here. And, as you can see, my roommate is enjoying it _immensely_." At the mention of Sei she let out a small sigh with a shake of her head. "I apologize if she has caused any trouble within this week."

Miyuki let out a soft giggle. "It's alright. The Strawberry Dorm is lively but it has never been this lively. I really do hope that Sister Hamasaka isn't happy about it."

Youko suppressed her shudder at the mention of the Head Sister of St Miator. She had met the woman whom was in charge of the well-being of the Dorm. She hadn't done anything wrong though but it was still somewhat of a scary introduction. The whole Yumayurikai members had to meet her. Between Sachiko and Sister Hamasaka, the latter was much scarier once provoke.

"Oh, I do hope so." Youko replied with a nervous chuckle. She was sure as anything that she would _not_ want to be on the receiving end of Sister Hamasaka's anger.

It was that moment that she saw a glimpse of Lulim's checkered uniform along with the shoulder-length blonde hair that she wouldn't have mistaken for anybody. It was no other than Satou Sei, and she wasn't sure what the blonde was up to. If she had an umbrella of her own, she would have followed the girl. Since she didn't, she would have to hold back her curiosity behind Sei's presence near St Miator's Academy until they could meet up together again after dinner. While she was staring at the spot that Sei had disappeared into, she didn't notice Miyuki was looking at her. The latter girl was trying to figure out what it was that had caught Youko's eyes to go from delighted to curiosity with a tint of sadness in them. She had studied and observed Shizuma for far too long that she knew exactly what the other girl's eyes were portraying. And even though she wanted to voice out her concern about Youko's sudden change of expression, she didn't want to intrude and be called nosy.

-**x**-

Sei was hurrying towards the St Miator's Academy since she knew that Youko had forgotten to take her umbrella with her. Since she had no way to contact Youko to wait for her, she had to subdue to the fact that Youko might have gotten wet on the way back to the dorm. She also hoped that Youko would be waiting for her, even if she knew that the dark hair girl wouldn't. Unfortunately, she saw Youko and Miyuki on the path towards the Strawberry Dorm. For a brief second it looked like Youko was having fun talking to the St Miator's Student Council President. By the smile and the delight look on Youko's face, she felt as if someone had splashed icy cold water into her face. Why she was feeling like that she didn't know. All she knew was the fact that she had started to feel this way ever since she had surprised Youko, much to the other girl's disapproval. All of the thought of trying to get close to Chikaru suddenly disappeared. And at that moment, she wanted to hear more of Youko's adorable squeal since she didn't get to hear it much.

Sei didn't want to interrupt the two of them, and she knew that if she was to stay in one spot for long they would certainly notice her. So as fast as she could, she made a turn to the opposite direction from the pathway that she was on, and dashed into the trees and used it as a shortcut to the dorm. However, she didn't miss the look of surprise on Youko's face before her form disappeared into the tree. If she had stayed a little longer when Youko had caught her, she would have seen the sadness within brown orbs. She didn't want Youko to make it back before her, not when she knew the girl had seen her. So picking up a little bit of her pace, she blended into the tree and finally came out to a clear path. The Strawberry Dorm's gate was just a short walk away, and she didn't want to look like she was in much of a hurry. So she let out a small sigh, straightened herself up and started to walk at a proper pace towards the gate. It was then that she felt an arm circled around her waist and a body pressed up against her back. Then a hot, shuddering breath was sent against her earlobe and she had to fight back the urge to squeak in surprise. She then was quickly released when she didn't give into the owner's satisfaction, and heard a 'Hmph' from behind her.

"It's so hard to get one little sound out of you, Sei." Came a soft voice from no other than Minamoto Chikaru. When Sei turned to look at the girl, she couldn't help but giggle at the pout that was visible on the girl's lips. She had to admit that if Chikaru had gone as far as giving her earlobe just a nibble, she would have given the girl her satisfaction of getting a squeak from her.

"Chikaru-sama, you're out of your luck for that." Yoshino said as she walked up to the two with Rei beside her.

Chikaru turned and raised an eyebrow at the younger girl. "Out of luck?"

Yoshino nodded before dramatically pointing her finger towards Sei. "Rosa Gigantea's perversion has gone beyond the acceptable level of perversion! There is no way that you could even get as much as a little squeak from her!"

While Chikaru only blinked at Yoshino in both amusement and amazement, Sei was trying her best to hold in her laugh while Rei was covering her face in her hand. The Rosa Gigantea couldn't hold in her laughter anymore, so she let it loose that even Chikaru had to join in herself. Yoshino was speechless. Her intention wasn't to make a joke. Her intention was to make Chikaru realize that she couldn't get out even a little squeak from the blonde. Finally, Yoshino withdrew her hand and shook her head in disbelief. She knew that she should give up trying to make a full out of herself when Sei was involved in the matter.

"Yoshino-chan, let's leave the two laughing. This rain isn't going to stop any time soon, unfortunately." Rei softly spoke to her petite soeur and cousin, hoping that the other girl would listen to her.

To her delight, Yoshino nodded and started to walk with her but not before she turned to look behind her shoulder and poked her tongue out childishly at Sei. Sei couldn't help but laugh just a little more before she sobered herself along with Chikaru. She turned to the shorter girl and patted her on the shoulder gently.

"That was a good try, Chikaru, you almost got me." She said with her trademark grin.

Chikaru giggled softly before nodding her head towards the direction of the dorm. "Shall we go?"

The blonde nodded as the two started to walk alongside each other towards the dorm. Sei didn't intend to be out there for long, especially when she didn't want _anyone_ to witness what Chikaru had done just to get a squeak out of her. She knew that Chikaru wouldn't use that method to any other girl, and she would like to know why the girl had done it to her. Of course, it was a pay back from yesterday since she had done the exact same thing, and it had gotten her a nice little squeak from Chikaru. But for Chikaru to copy her and try her best to get the same squeak out of her? Well, she certainly hadn't thought that the girl would actually _try_.

"It seems like we already have a winner." Chikaru said with a happy smile.

Sei looked at her, confused to why the girl was smiling so happily when the winner wouldn't be her. As if reading her mind, Chikaru just shrugged as she turned to face Sei with a look of curiosity. "I wonder who you're going to take out on a date, Sei."

Sei let out a chuckle and shrugged. "Oh, who knows. I haven't quite decided it yet." She knew that it was a lie, but there was no way that she would tell the other girl that she was going to pick her for her date partner. Already, she could feel a tiny bit of regret from the very deep of her heart about it. She knew that Youko had already known of the winner's prize, and even though the girl had no objection towards it, Sei knew that if given the chance she would hear the girl's complaints all night.

"Oh, this is too interesting." Chikaru said in amusement as she giggled. She had a small idea of who Sei would be taking on her date, and she knew it wouldn't be Shimako but she could be wrong. Since they had all of tomorrow to find who the winner and the winner's choice of a date partner within the club, she simply could hold out just a little bit longer.


	9. Chapter 9

**Nine**

Youko decided to hold off her questions for Sei when the Yumayurikai were all hanging out in the Strawberry Dorm's lounging area. There were less students coming to them and asking them questions regarding to St Lilian, and they were glad because they had some peace to themselves. However, that didn't mean that they weren't the talk of all the three schools! The Red Rose was well known for their politeness and formalities that St Miator hadn't seen for years. Yumi and Youko weren't ones to be difficult to approach, not when they always had a welcoming air around them. So for other students, it wasn't difficult for them to come up to those two to have a short, yet, normal chat. Sachiko, on the other hand, was more than difficult. Even though she had joined a club it still didn't mean that she was easy to approach. Yes, Sachiko was polite but from the other students' point of views, it looked as if the raven-haired beauty was forcing herself to greet and smile at them in a polite manner. To the people that know her it was the opposite. Sachiko just didn't seem the type to loosen herself up unless it was for Yumi's sake.

"So how is your club going, Sachiko?" Youko asked out of interest and concern for her soeur.

Sachiko took a small sip of her tea first before answering. "It is progressing quite well, Onee-sama. The girls there are very creative."

"Hmmm," Came Sei's voice as she studied the young Ogasawara. "I can't see you as the creative type, Sachiko." Of course, what she had just said was a challenge. As for Sachiko, she had never backed away from a challenge, whether it was direct or indirect.

The raven-haired beauty glanced over to the current Rosa Gigantea, narrowed her eyes at the older girl before setting her teacup down on the table. She then folded her arms, her lips pressed in a firm line. "And you think I won't be able to write one creative story or poem, Rosa Gigantea?"

Sei chuckled as she knew that the challenge had been accepted. She was looking forward to reading whatever Sachiko could come up with. "It is not a matter of thinking you can't do it, Sachiko. It is a matter of you _providing_ the evidence."

Youko sighed and shook her head. She couldn't really stop Sei from teasing her petite soeur, and she couldn't really stop Sachiko to glare daggers at Sei. She knew that the both of them didn't really hate or dislike each other, it was just their routine. It was somewhat of an entertainment and thanked to Sachiko taking Yumi in as her petite soeur, that entertainment only increased. She loved every single member of the Yumayurikai group even though there were times that they would drive her insane. She wondered how she could handle all of it, especially when her sanity was concerned. She let out another sigh as Sei continued to tease her petite soeur while Sachiko responded to Sei with a cold demeanor.

"Rosa Chinensis?"

Youko quickly turned to the soft voice that was addressing her. It was the first time that she heard such a voice, and she knew that it wasn't from one of the members in Yumayurikai. So when the voice had addressed her, the banter between Sei and Sachiko stopped as the rest of the Yumayurikai turned to the source of the voice. The only person that recognized the voice was Shimako since the girl was in her club. It also didn't surprise her that Sei didn't recognize the girl's voice. Sei didn't interact with her as much as she did. So when the girl had spoken up to the current Rosa Chinensis, she wondered what the girl could possibly want with the older girl. They were both from a different school, and Rose Chinensis was a lot older than her.

"Yes?" Youko answered as she acknowledged the girl with a warm smile.

The girl, or rather, Kagome, was quietly debating herself whether to ask her a direct question or not. She had been sitting with Kizuna and Remon while watching the Roses' table. Something about the Roses intrigued her but she didn't know what it was yet. However, she wasn't as much interested in any other Roses family as much as the Red Rose family. It was as if there was something behind them that she couldn't quite decipher; a puzzle that she couldn't complete. The first Red Rose would have been Sachiko herself, but the more she watched them the more she came to realize that it was Youko that she wanted to decipher first. There was something about Youko that made the younger girl wanted to reach out and wipe the invisible tears that were gathering below her eyes.

"My name is Byakudan Kagome." The first year said softly as her eyes flickered over to the group for a short moment before they settled on Youko once more.

Youko smiled at the younger girl's introduction and even though she wanted to know what had gotten the girl to ask for her attention, she didn't mind the least. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Kagome-chan. My name is Mizuno Youko, what can I do for you?"

Kagome didn't answer straight away. She was still debating whether she should ask or not. Youko was growing a little uncomfortable under the girl's gaze and she wanted to look elsewhere, but that would seem to be rude of her to do so. So she waited patiently for Kagome to speak up, while the rest of the members at the table were more than curious to what Kagome wanted. For a good two minutes that seemed like an hour to Youko, Kagome moved a little bit closer to her before lifting her teddy bear's hand towards the side of Youko's face.

"Why are you sad?" Kagome asked softly, her voice filled with concern as she let the teddy bear's hand gently graze Youko's cheek.

Shock that the younger girl even asked such a direct question. Not only that, Kagome's voice was filled with so much concern that Youko just wanted to cry in the little girl's arms. No one had even asked her such a question before. No, scratch that! No one had ever observed her and saw right through her mask in such a short amount of time! And here stood the little girl that she had seen around the Strawberry Dorm, the girl that she had absolutely no idea about, asked her such a question that it sent a sharp pain through her heart. She wanted to tell the younger girl that she was fine, a lie that she knew the girl would see right through her. To make matter worse, she could feel all of her friends' eyes on her. She closed her eyes, breathed out a soft sigh before opening her eyes to look up at the younger girl. She tried her best to put on that strong mask of hers, and hoped that the younger girl wouldn't question her any further even if she would to see right through the mask.

"I am not sad, Kagome-chan. Whatever makes you think that I am?" Youko replied with a little chuckle. Then she reached her hand out towards the younger girl's face, caressing her cheek for a short moment with a smile. "Thank you for your concern, Kagome-chan."

Kagome didn't believe those words that Youko had provided her. She knew that there was something wrong with Youko, but the older girl had such a strong resolve that she couldn't reach in it and grasp the real problem. However, she would have to let it go since it was clearly written in Youko's eyes. The older girl was silently pleading her to not question it further. It looked like the older girl knew that she could see right through her. Kagome acknowledged the older girl's silent pleading for another second before nodding her head. Without much of a further word, the younger girl turned and walked back to where her group of friends was.

Youko let out a small, inaudible sigh before she turned back to face her group of friends. All eyes were on her when she looked up at the group. They were piercing through her in so much concern that she could feel her mask started to crumble. Yes, she was sad. She was sad at the fact that no one seemed to understand her. She was sad at the fact that she had to suppress her feelings rather than pouring them out on the table. She was sad at the fact that the one woman that she had been in love with would probably never going to return her feelings. She was sad at the fact that she had been silently suffering for all these couple of years without much of a complaint. So instead of letting her mask crumble, she put up another one along with a force smile as she waved her hand to dismiss the subject.

"Come on now, you all know that I am perfectly happy." She said with a little chuckle. "Don't be concerned about me. There is absolutely nothing for any of you to worry about."

The other girls were still looking at her in concern but with the reassured smile that she had put her on face, they let out a shrug and went back to whatever conversation that they were having before Kagome appeared. Even though Sachiko was more than worried about her Onee-sama, she couldn't do anything but to let it go if Youko didn't wish to talk about it. She was raised better than to push her Onee-sama into talking to her about her problems. And because of that, she let it bothered her not knowing that Yumi was now concern for both Rosa Chinensis and Rosa Chinensis en bouton. She hadn't been around the two that much so she couldn't really figure out what was wrong with them. And by the look from everyone else, they seemed to let it slide when she knew they were curious about it also.

**-x-**

Later that night in Youko's and Sei's room, the two girls were getting ready for bed when the taller girl had stopped gathering her textbooks for tomorrow's class just to look over at Youko. The other girl was preparing herself to have a bath before bed, oblivious to the stare that she was receiving from Sei. However, to her utter surprise, the dark-haired girl felt a pair of arms encircled her waist as she was being pulled back against the front of the other girl's body. Soon enough her brain registered what was happening for her cheeks began to heat up into a little blush. If the wordless hug came from what had happened at the lounge today then she had to clear it up as best as she could. She didn't want her companion to be worrying about her when the girl had nothing to worry about.

"Sei…" Youko sighed out her name only for the latter to tighten her hold around her.

"What's wrong?" Came the other girl's soft reply. Youko could feel the warm breath on her neck as the other girl rested her chin against her shoulder. She suppressed the shudder that was traveling down her spine. Her body was fully aware of what the taller girl was doing to her, even if it was just her hot breath.

"There's nothing wrong." Youko replied as she tried to wiggle herself out of Sei's embrace. When Sei didn't let go off of her, she feigned a frown with a shook of her head. "I want to get a bath before bed, Sei. If you keep holding me like this I won't be able to go to bed until very late."

Letting out a soft sigh, Sei reluctantly let go off of Youko as she took a couple of steps back. She wanted to know what was wrong with her friend. And by the look of it, her friend didn't want to talk about it with her.

"Sorry, I'll let you have your bath then." Sei responded as she shrugged. If today wasn't much of a success, she was sure that there would be another day for Youko to be open with her. The only problem was, would the other girl be open with her or not.

Youko turned and smiled in thanks at her, and the blonde could easily tell that the smile didn't even reach her eyes though she didn't comment on it. "Thank you, and don't wait up for me." And with that said, the current Rosa Chinensis turned and made her way towards the bathroom. Once she had disappeared from the blonde's sight, Sei let out another sigh as she plopped herself down on her side of the bed and stared up at the ceiling.

"What am I going to do with you, Youko?" She murmured to herself as she heard the sound of running water in the bathroom.

Once the bathtub was full, Youko turned off the water before she stripped off of her clothing. She hung her uniform against the door before moving herself towards the tub, and climbing into it. She eased herself down on the warm water, and once its warmth started to untie the knots in her body, she let out a sigh of contentment. Then her mind drifted back to the short conversation with Kagome and began to wonder how long the girl had been watching her. Then her mind drifted towards Sei before she let out a frown. She had forgotten to ask the other girl why she was near St Miator's Academy today.


	10. Chapter 10

**Ten**

Friday had come and went, and she knew it was just a matter of time for her to think of a place where she'd take Chikaru on their first date. In truth, the current Rosa Gigantea didn't want to take the Lulim's Student Council President on a date. She wouldn't even want to call it a date. If anything, she'd like to call it as a friendly outing. She had been thinking all night last night while Youko was taking her bath. She had thought about her own feelings, analyzing them before she came to a conclusion that she needed the other girl's help for the answer she been trying to get. It might not be fair for the other girl, not when she would be using her anyway. There was no other person for her to talk about when it came to her feelings. Well, she could talk to herself but that would get her nowhere. Plus, she wasn't sure what the other girl would be feeling about her too. If she was to ask for help, she feared that it might backfire and would hurt her friend. So with a sigh, she continued to stare out the window in her room. Youko wasn't back yet from the talk with Miyuki. Even though she wondered why Miyuki turned up and grabbed Youko, she could of care less about it. Or maybe she was feeling just a tad bit jealous that Youko was giving her attention to Miyuki but not her. That sort of feeling she tried not to acknowledge it, though it was getting a little hard not to.

A light knock the door brought her out of her thoughts as she turned towards it. She let out her confirmation for the other person behind the door to come in, and she was surprise to see that it was Chikaru. However, as quick as her surprise would have been, Sei turned back to her old self as she let a smirk formed on her lips.

"Well, what do I owe you for this pleasant surprise, Chikaru?" The blonde asked as she fully turned her body towards the other girl.

Chikaru giggled before she let her eyes scanned her surroundings. It was the first time that she had been in Sei's room. Or rather, Sei's and Youko's room. She felt like she was intruding into their privacy when Youko wasn't even around. She had spotted Youko talking with Miyuki so she thought that she could give Sei a visit. She knew that Sei didn't want to go on to this date as she had first suggested it. Something had changed in her blonde friend and she was curious to find the reason behind it. She didn't want to go on this date if her friend wouldn't be able to enjoy herself. Besides, she didn't think of it as much of a date. She thought of it as a way to get to know the other girl better. And, if possible, she'd love to invite the Yumayurikai along. Well, maybe this was why she was in Sei's room at the moment.

"I was thinking about the date tomorrow." Chikaru said thoughtfully. "Where would you like to go?"

Sei stood up from her seat and went over to Chikaru. She placed a hand atop the girl's shoulder with a soft smile. "I'm in a completely different town so I am unfamiliar with its surrounding. I hope that you might surprise me?"

"Hmm," Chikaru let out softly as she raised her fingers to rest her chin against them. She had a thoughtful look upon her face while she raked her brain of where they might go. Well, since it was the weekend and she always wanted to head into town to do a little shopping, she thought that it might just be a good idea to shop with the taller girl. Also, she began to wonder if Sei would have any objection towards her suggestion of bringing the Yumayurikai along for the experience. Well, the answer would always be a no if she didn't ask. So she looked up at Sei with a hopeful spark in her eyes. "Can we bring your friends along? I would absolutely _love_ to get to know _all of them_!"

Sei was taken aback by Chikaru's sudden request. She never thought that the shorter girl would even ask such a question. Wasn't it just a date between the two of them? How could Chikaru be so carefree about it? A part of her was a little bit hurt that Chikaru would ask such a thing, while the other part of her was glad that Chikaru had voiced her question out. Besides, it wouldn't hurt her pride at all since she would have her friends with her, and Chikaru showing them the town. So without much further thinking into the question, the blonde let out a huge grin as she nodded her head. "You don't mind?"

Chikaru smiled and shook her head. "Of course not! Although it might be fun to be with you as I drag you from store to store, but I want to use this opportunity to get the Yumayurikai together so we can have a big shopping spree!"

Sei tilted her head as she began to think about the idea. "A shopping spree huh? That sounds nice." She then nodded to herself. "Alright, I'll go and ask them now." When she was about to move pass Chikaru, she felt the other girl's soft hand on her arm, halting her movement. When she turned to look at the other girl, all she saw was a cheerful smile on the girl's beautiful face.

"Shall we go together, Rosa Gigantea?" Chikaru said softly before a giggle escaped her lips. "Wow, it does feel a little different calling you by your Lilian's title."

Sei chuckled as she patted the hand that was on her arm gently. "Does it? A good kind of different or a bad kind?"

As they exited the room, Chikaru had already hooked her arm around the taller girl's in a friendly manner. She wasn't looking for anything from the blonde other than friendship. She wasn't looking for anything from anyone other than friendship. She was perfectly content with the friends that she got, and the friends that she would soon to have. She couldn't have it any other way even if she was offered a chance to fall in love with one of her friends. She treasured friendship more than anything, and she didn't want to lose one of her friends over some silly relationships.

"I'm not quite sure." Chikaru answered rather playfully. "It sounds like you're a delicate white rose but when I look at you, you are more than that. The title _Rosa Gigantea_ seems to not fit you all that well."

Sei let out another chuckle which earned her a giggle from her companion. She could tell that she was going to like Chikaru and value her as a friend. However, she wasn't sure if she could go to Chikaru to talk about her feelings or not. Chikaru seemed to be nice enough to help with whatever it was that her friends were concerning about. And from what she had been seeing in both the Strawberry Dorm's lounging area and St Lulim Girls' High, she could tell that Chikaru was like the Astrea Hill's student counselor. Not only that, the girl seemed to dig up a lot of dirt around the school whether she was present at the scene or not. That could only lead to her knowing about absolutely everything without having to ask for it. It was quite impressive if Sei had to say so herself.

"Oh look! There's Youko!" Chikaru exclaimed as she pointed her finger towards the short dark haired beauty that was making her way towards them. She then let go off of Sei's arm before she clasped her hands behind her back, a smile upon her face when Youko came up to them with her own smile. "Good evening, Youko. I hope that your night is going splendidly!"

**-x-**

She didn't know why Miyuki had asked her to come with her. It sounded almost urgent and she couldn't pass that up if her friend was personally asking her for help. When she left her room that moment, she had stolen a glance over at the blonde that was sitting at her own study desk looking out at the window. The blonde had looked as if she was deep in thought and she could see there was a small smile upon her face. She had started to think that it was because of the date tomorrow that had gotten her friend so happy about it. So after she had told the blonde that she was going out to talk with Miyuki, and receiving no kind of response, she had silently slipped out of the room and followed Miyuki down the hallway.

It turned out that Miyuki's concern was on Yumi, which had surprised her. Miyuki had looked a little nervous as if she was fighting within herself whether she should tell her the whole story or not. It was then that Miyuki settled with just warning her about Yumi's sanity if she was to hang around Shizuma. Youko did notice that Yumi had spent a lot of time with Shizuma ever since Sachiko had taken up the liberty to prove Sei wrong. So the younger girl had been trying to fill in her space when Shimako was busy with her own club, Yoshino and Rei had taken up a liking to horseback riding and she didn't know Rosa Foetida that well to mingle with her. However, she didn't know why she was the one to be hearing this. Shouldn't Sachiko be the first one to hear it, not her?

"So, what you are saying Miyuki, is that Yumi is spending too much time with Shizuma and that it might not be healthy for her?" Youko asked as she tried to grasp what the other girl was saying.

Miyuki sighed as she nodded. "I'm not quite sure why Shizuma would be interested in Yumi when she already has her eyes on Nagisa. However, I can't just sit and watch whatever game that Shizuma might be playing with these girls." She turned her gaze away from the other girl as she looked out from the window. "I know what my best friend is like when she is intrigued by a pretty girl. I just don't want either of them to get hurt if they were to get too attached from her."

Youko let out a small giggle as Miyuki quickly turned her head to her with a confused look. "I'm sorry, I know that you are concern about Yumi-chan but I can promise you that Yumi-chan won't be too attached from Shizuma. The only person on that girl's mind is my petite soeur, Sachiko, and I'm sure that no one could ever change that."

Miyuki heaved out a sigh in relief upon hearing the other girl's response. "I guess I can rest just a little bit easy tonight. I apologize for dragging you out here for such a small matter."

Youko shook her head as the corner off her lips curled up in a playful smile. "It's okay, I figured that you just wanted to spend a little time alone with me." She watched in amusement as the other girl's cheeks flushed in a cute shade of pink. She couldn't hide the little chuckle that wanted to escape her lips.

Miyuki cleared her throat to regain her composure before she smiled at the other girl. "Well, that is all that I wanted to talk about. Since there is nothing more, I will return to my room. Have a good night, Youko."

Youko smiled in return and replied gently. "Thank you, Miyuki. And you, too, have a good night."

The two girls parted as they went on their own different ways. When Youko had rounded to the path that led to her room, she almost stopped on her track when she saw Chikaru and Sei happily talking to one another. She could also saw that their arms were hooked with each other, and she couldn't help but felt jealous by the act. Chikaru had just known Sei for less than a week and yet, there she was, being so friendly with her Sei when she couldn't even be _that_ friendly with her! _'Wait, _my_ Sei?'_ Youko thought before she shook the thought out of her head. She couldn't be thinking of Sei like that when she knew that the two of them could never be. So instead of just looking a little hurt, she gathered up her courage and put on that mask that she had grown accustomed to before resuming her pace towards the two.

Chikaru was the first to notice them and she saw that the girl had withdrawn her arm from Sei's, while Sei was looking at the current Rosa Chinensis with a puzzle expression. Youko inwardly shrugged as she was greeted by Chikaru, and she had to force a smile on her face as she responded back politely.

"Good evening, Chikaru. And yes, my night is going _splendidly_, thank you for asking." She said with a hidden tint of sarcasm behind her word. She hoped that the other two wouldn't be able to detect it. "Where are the two of you going at this time?"

Chikaru grinned as she pulled her hands up to the front then clasping them once more. "We were going to find the rest of the Yumayurikai members to ask them to come with us tomorrow on a shopping spree! Of course, you are definitely invited as well!" Chikaru practically said with so much enthusiasm that Youko couldn't find any ill meaning behind her words. "I want to get to know every single one of you! I know that you all have sparked an interest within our Student Councils' members, and even though I know Toumori-san wouldn't admit it but she is _very_ interested in getting to know all of you." The girl then took a pause, letting out a soft sigh before she shook her head. "That is all that she talks about in the meetings these days."

Youko let out a smile before she nodded her head. "Yes, I would like to attend to this shopping spree tomorrow." Then she turned to Sei as her smile slowly began to falter. "If that is, indeed, alright with you Sei."

The taller girl blinked as if to try and register what Youko was saying to her, before she put up her hands with a nervous smile. "Of course it is alright with me! It'd be fun and we get to know about this part of the city!"

Youko nodded her head before she turned to face Chikaru once more. "I'll leave it to the two of you to ask the rest of the other Roses. They are probably still hanging around the lounging area."

"Alright, have a good night, Youko." Chikaru said softly with a smile adorning her face.

Youko nodded, returning the smile. "Have a good night as well, Chikaru." Then without further words other than a short glance at Sei, the current Rosa Chinensis proceed to walk back to her room. She didn't know what was going to happen tomorrow, but she knew that at least the Roses would be having a good time.


	11. Chapter 11

**Eleven**

The week had almost finished and neither did any of the girls felt like they were out of place. Sure, when they first came here on a Sunday they felt like they were intruding everyone of their presence. Never before they felt like they were in a place where they shouldn't be standing. When all eyes were set on them that evening, all they wanted to do was to pack up their belongings and go straight back home. At least they had each other to rely on so they wouldn't feel so lonely in such an unfamiliar place. Also, they knew how much the Student Council members were trying to do just to make them feel welcome and comfortable. They really did appreciate that, and more importantly, they appreciated the kind thought and offer from Chikaru from last night. They weren't thinking of doing anything on a Saturday, other than spending some time with one another. However, they couldn't let a chance of discovering a whole new place pass by!

Shimako had already finished getting ready and was waiting for her roommate to do the same. She didn't mind the fact that Yumi seemed to be taken quite longer than she was supposed to, as if the pigtailed girl was going on a date. She couldn't help but be amused as the other girl fussed over her clothes. She could offer the girl her help but it wouldn't be as much entertaining as it was just watching her. It was just a gathering of friends and since Sachiko would be in it, the Angel of Lilian knew that her dear friend was trying not to embarrass her Onee-sama would improper clothing.

After quite some time, Yumi finally decided on wearing an outfit that not only looked cute on her, but comfortable as well. When she did a twirl in front of the mirror, she couldn't help but smile to herself. She wanted to look good for Sachiko and of course, she didn't want any of the students here to think badly of the way she dressed since she was a member of the Yumayurikai.

"It feels almost as if I'm in a broadway show." Shimako said softly with a tinge of amusement in her tone.

Embarrassed by the fact that she had forgotten Shimako was waiting for her, Yumi began to blush scarlet as she casted her eyes on the floor. "I'm sorry for keeping you waiting, Shimako-san." Yumi said softly. "I…didn't mean to."

Shimako giggled at the other girl before she stood up from her bed and went over to her friend. She flattened out the wrinkles of the jacket on Yumi's shoulders before she took a small step back and observed the girl. She had a thoughtful look on her face before the look disappeared and was replaced by a gentle smile. "Would you like me to help with your hair, Yumi-san?"

Of course, the only respond that she could get out from her friend was an intelligent "Ehh!" in which she couldn't help but giggle a bit.

"Well, since you are already treating this friendly gathering as a date between you and Sachiko-sama I thought I could give you a hand." The blonde explained as she tried her best to hide the look of amusement upon her face, though she knew that her eyes were giving it away.

"D-Date? Who s-said I was t-t-thinking that this w-would be a d-d-date?" Yumi stammered out her sentence with such a perfect look of shock on her face that Shimako had to let out a small bit of amused laughter to leave her lips.

"Oh Yumi-san, you are, indeed, a very interesting girl." Was all the blonde said before she turned and headed towards the door. "You better hurry though, I'm sure that everyone is waiting downstairs."

Yumi's face expressed the shock that was adorning her face before embarrassment kicked in. She then quickly went over to her dresser and ran a brush through her hair, untying the small knots in them before pulling out her red ribbons to tie her hair up in her trademark pigtails. She checked herself in the dresser mirror one last time before smiling approvingly to herself. "Done!" She exclaimed before standing up from her seat and turned to face her friend. "Sorry for keeping you waiting again, shall we go?"

"Of course." Shimako responded with a smile.

The two girls exited their room and made their way down the stairs. Yumi was looking forward to this outing but most of all, she was looking forward to being with her Onee-sama. She could only spend morning, lunch and after dinner with Sachiko every day and if she was lucky, Sachiko wouldn't need to be in her Literature Club. Well, if she was _really_ lucky, Sachiko would take a break in writing a short novel for Sei to read. Actually, the reason she was even writing the novel was to prove that she, too, could be creative. Just thinking about that got the pigtailed girl to sigh softly to herself. She thought that she could spend some more time with her Onee-sama now that they didn't need to worry about Lilian and Sachiko being busy as the Ogasawara heiress. It seemed like the older girl couldn't spend so much time without something to do. That was what she had seen when they had entered Astrea Hill.

"Mmm, it seems like we've gained another member." Shimako spoke up beside her. It startled Yumi just a bit but wasn't enough to get a little squeak out from her. When the pigtailed girl turned to the group that was waiting them, she blushed when her eyes connected with the sapphire ones.

**-x-**

Sachiko had her arms crossed across her abdomen as she stood with Youko while waiting for her petite soeur to get down. She didn't know how long she had been waiting for the said soeur to finish getting ready. It wasn't that big of a day and she didn't know why Yumi had to take that long to get ready. Every once in a little while she had to glance at the watch on her wrist, while her foot was tapping impatiently quietly on the ground. She had offered the girl to help her get ready if she so needed, but her offer had been declined. Even though it hurt a little for her petite soeur to decline her, she was proud of Yumi for wanting to do everything by herself. Now, she wished that she could have pushed her offer onto the girl because Yumi was fashionably late. The raven-haired beauty didn't mind the fact that another Miator's students have joined them. She minded the fact that her petite soeur was late!

"Sachiko." Came a soft voice from her Onee-sama as she felt a hand on her shoulder. The tapping of her foot stopped instantly as she let out a sigh. Having Youko beside her always calmed her nerves when her mind was consistently around Yumi.

"I apologize," Sachiko responded with another sigh. "Yumi is late."

The hand on her shoulder gave her a small squeeze. "It's alright. We are not in a hurry." Youko responded and when the younger girl turned to look up at her Onee-sama, she saw a gentle smile on the other girl's lips. With a shake of her head, she turned to look up at the interior of the dorm, expecting to see that pigtailed girl descending the stairs.

"Spoiling her will not do her any good, Onee-sama."

Youko let out a chuckled as she patted the younger's shoulder. She withdrawn her hand and turned her head over to the dorm, amused to see what was going to happen next. As the group waited for another minute, they saw movement from the stairs and when they focused their attention on the two younger girls, they couldn't help but giggle at Yumi's daydream expression while walking beside Shimako. Everyone was giggling except Sachiko. Once her sapphire eyes made contact with the big brown ones, Sachiko knew that her petite soeur could guess she was in trouble. The two girls then made a quick movement down the stairs, and soon enough they had joined up with the group.

"I apologize, everyone, for our lateness." Shimako said sincerely as she lowered her head in a bow.

"It's okay, Shimako. I know it's quite hard to take care of Yumi-chan." Sei said playfully as she winked down at the pigtailed girl. The girl in subject couldn't help but blush at the comment before mimicking Shimako's action.

"I'm sorry for making everyone wait!" She said, her voice raising a little as she felt embarrassed for taking so much time getting ready for today.

Sachiko cleared her throat slightly before she moved to stand in front of her petite soeur. She reached her hands up towards the scarf that the other girl was wearing, and by the look of it, she knew that Yumi was in such a hurry that she didn't put the scarf on properly. Quietly she untied the knot that her soeur had done herself, and retied it before smoothing the material down. She then lifted her eyes up from the scarf to meet the brown orbs that were watching her movement with an adorable blush. She couldn't stay mad at Yumi. No, she couldn't even come close to being mad at the girl.

"Yumi." She said softly. Even though she wanted to smile at the fact that her voice had brought Yumi out of whatever daze that the girl was in, her lips remained pressed together in a thin line. "It is improper for a lady to be late." She chided the girl.

Yumi's cheeks deepened a few shade of red as she nodded. "I'm sorry for making you wait, Onee-sama."

Sachiko then smiled as her hand came up to rest upon Yumi's cheek, enjoying the warmth feeling that was radiating off of the girl's skin. "I hope that I won't need to wait next time."

Before Yumi could answer, Sei let out a loud sigh to gain the two girls attention. Once the older blonde got the attention that she was looking for, she simply shrugged before motioning her hand to the two of them. "Even though the scene is flattering and what's not, if we don't hurry we might miss the train. Or would you two like to have some more moments while providing us with some more entertainment?"

Both girls blushed as they reluctantly separated from one another. The scene before them was too good not to laugh. Once the group had sobered up from the laughter, they started to make their way to the train station. The walk there was pleasant enough that it seemed too short for them. With Yumi and Nagisa being the main people to provide laughter, giggles and what's not, it didn't take long for them to reach the train station. It also didn't take long for the train to arrive, and once they did the boarded the train to go to town.

"Where should we go first, Chikaru-sama?" Nagisa asked curiously over to the older girl. They were sitting together and Nagisa had decided to take the seat next to the window.

Chikaru placed a slender finger against her chin thoughtfully. Then she shrugged before turning over to the younger girl with a smile. "Let's decide once we get there, Nagisa-chan."

"Eh!" Both Yumi and Nagisa exclaimed in unison. However, the reason behind their little squeak was different.

Yumi immediately turned to look at Nagisa as the latter did the same. Yumi was sitting across from her with Sachiko, so Nagisa didn't think that she'd hear what Chikaru had said.

"Are you alright, Yumi-san?" Nagisa asked.

Yumi smiled and nodded her head. "Yes, I'm fine. Are _you_ alright?" She asked the red head with concern.

Nagisa blinked before letting out a soft giggle. "Oh, yes I'm fine. Chikaru-sama doesn't have a plan to where we should go once we get to town first."

"Oh!" Yumi said before ideas started to swim around the girl's mind. There were a lot of things to do in town, and catching a movie wouldn't be one of them. So after a few more moment, she nodded to herself before glancing over to Chikaru with a hopeful look in her eyes. "Um, Chikaru-sama…?"

Chikaru turned, offering a gentle smile at her. "Yes, Yumi-chan?"

"Can we…visit a jewellery store first..?" The pigtailed girl asked unsurely.

"Of course! We now have our first destination!" Chikaru exclaimed excitedly as she quietly clapped her hands. "Thank you, Yumi-chan, for offering your help."

Yumi blushed at the praise before she quickly shook her head in denial. "N-no, I haven't done a-anything much."

The older girl chuckled in amusement only to see the blush had deepened on the girl's face. Her eyes then traveled over to the pair that was sitting opposite from them. She could clearly tell that there was a storm raging within those two, Sei and Youko. The reason that she had suggested the Yumayurikai to participate in this wondrous outing wasn't because she wanted to spend more time with them. Of course, that had been one of the few reasons why she had asked them to come. The main reason that she had invited them to come was because of Sei and Youko. There was something between these two women that she would like to find out, and perhaps, help out in any way that she possibly could.

'_Oh well',_ she thought to herself as she had calmed down from her chuckle. _'I have a lot of time to get to know these two.'_


	12. Chapter 12

**Twelve**

The friendly gathering went well. Most of the girls had returned to the Strawberry Dorm late in the afternoon with their purchases. Chikaru was the only one that had a lot of shopping bags draping down on both side of her arms. To everyone it looked like that the St Lulim's Student Council President was a shopaholic since she had stopped at nothing to buy the accessories, clothing and necessities that she wanted from each store. Shimako had offered her help to carry some of the bags for Chikaru, and that had urged the girl on to shop until everyone had dropped before her. When she noticed the slight slump on Nagisa's posture, she knew that she had gone just a tad bit too far with her shopping. Also thanks to the sun for slowly having setting, she had a mean to stop dragging the Roses around and suggested to head home. While Chikaru had the most items from the little gathering, Sachiko had simply admired the skinny jeans that Yumi had on and had asked the girl to help her pick out one. Of course, this surprised the rest of the head Roses because they had known her for her formal wear, even if they were just casuals. And upon hearing the soft request from Sachiko to Yumi, they couldn't help but to jump the raven-haired girl and suggested all the style of jeans she could have wore. Even the attention that the Ogasawara heiress was getting out of control, but she appreciated their help even if she had to try at least a hundred pairs of jeans on.

The girls had parted ways once they got back to the Strawberry Dorm. Chikaru had asked Sei if she could use Shimako to help her carry the shopping bags up to her room. The older blonde had agreed to it if only Shimako was fine with it. The younger blonde smiled appreciatively up at her Onee-sama and had replied that she would be happy to help Chikaru with her load. The Lulim's Student Council President knew that she could always ask Eriko to help her, but she didn't want to intrude to whatever that the other girl was having with the other Yellow Rose members. So once the younger of the White Rose had started to follow her at a good distance from the other girls, Chikaru heaved out a frustrated sigh knowing that the other girl would be able to hear it.

"Chikaru-sama?" Shimako asked with concern dripping in her tone. "Are you tired? I could take some of the shopping bags from you since you are carrying so much!"

Chikaru hid her giggle at her plan of getting the Angel of Lilian to pay attention to her. Instead of doing that, she turned and offered the younger girl a smile of gratitude. "Thank you, Shimako-chan, but I am not tired. Not just yet." Then she turned back to face the path before her with a content smile. "The day is still young, after all."

The Angel of Lilian had always thought of herself of being able to read the other person easily, like a book. Unfortunately, she couldn't get a good read of Chikaru, a character that she yet to open the cover pages and read the interior of it. She didn't know that Chikaru also had a problem reading into her book as well. Either of the books was complicated, but they were harder to open up. While Chikaru was the outgoing and friendly of the two, Shimako knew that there had to be something hidden under there. The moment that both her Onee-sama and Chikaru had showed up last night to invite them to their little 'date' that had turned into a Yumayurikai get together, she had been surprised when Sei had gave credit to Chikaru for suggesting the idea. She knew that if this was anyone else beside Chikaru having a chance to spend one whole day with her Onee-sama, that said person would never even drop that chance. However, there Chikaru was with her infectious smile and laughter, she didn't mind that she didn't get to spend one whole day with the Rosa Gigantea. She wanted to know the real reason behind the get together today.

"So, the sigh wasn't because you're tired then?" Shimako asked curiously which earned her a nod from the other girl. "May I ask what is troubling you, Chikaru-sama?"

"Nothing and everything." Chikaru responded.

Shimako blinked at the answer. She didn't quite understand the meaning of Chikaru's words. How could there be nothing bothering her, while everything was bothering her? It made absolutely no sense to the blonde and somehow she could sense that the older girl wanted her to piece the puzzle of the answer together. _'Nothing and everything…'_ Shimako thought to herself as she studied the movement of the older girl before her. The way that Chikaru was moving in front of her seemed to give off some hints. However, she couldn't quite piece whatever puzzle that the older girl had thrown at her. Chikaru's movement was too hard to understand, especially when she was carrying all those shopping bags. _'Shopping bags…'_ She mentally said the words to herself as her eyes drifted to the shopping bags that Chikaru were carrying. There was no balance between both of the older girl's arms. The left arm carried less than the right, and it looked like the right arm might not be able to make it to the destination that both girls were heading. Shimako knew that Chikaru wasn't one to be carrying her shopping bags like this; no girls would even carry their shopping bags like that. Since Chikaru was a people person, the way that she was carrying the shopping bags may indicate that she was referring to two people in her answer. _'But who?'_ Shimako inwardly asked herself as she pondered around the people that she had met, and knew.

"Sei and Youko."

Chikaru's unexpected answer got her to widen her eyes in surprise. _'How did she…?'_ She started to ask herself but let the question slide. Chikaru was a people person after all. The older girl might have taken her silence as a way of deciphering the answer that she had given the younger girl not a moment before. So the shopping represented Sei and Youko, but which side would they be? There were things that she didn't quite ask her Onee-sama, things that she knew that if her Onee-sama wanted to talk about, she would surely do so. She trusted her Onee-sama to the point that if there was something wrong, she was to leave it as that until the older girl was willing to talk to her about it. Even though she wanted to share the older girl's burden, she didn't want to push her Onee-sama so much.

"You care about them?" Shimako asked unsurely. Chikaru was Sei's classmate after all, so she knew that the older girl had more time to observe her Onee-sama. However, Youko was attending St Miator so there was no way that Chikaru could observe the current Rosa Chinensis. If there was a chance for her to do so, that would only be after dinner and, of course, today.

"Intrigued." Chikaru corrected her. And before Shimako could open her mouth to question her, Chikaru let out a quiet sigh. "Intrigued by their stubbornness."

"Stubbornness?" Shimako asked in confusion. Yes, her Onee-sama might be stubborn in some ways, but she had never known the other Rose would be stubborn as well. And this conversation wasn't making any sense to her.

They arrived at their destination once Shimako had asked the question that the older girl knew she would have to clarify. So the older girl dragged her answer out a little long as she reached into her pocket and pulled out the key to her room. After unlocking and turning the doorknob, she pushed the door opened and let herself inside before ushering Shimako to come in. Both girls put down the shopping bags next to Chikaru's bed before the older girl turned to look at Shimako with a warm smile on her face.

"You'd notice soon enough." She said before she moved to sit down on her bed, shaking her head slightly before looking up with sadness in her eyes. "There's a storm coming, and I fear that our faces will be soaked, not our clothes."

**-x-**

The Yellow Rose family was perhaps one of the loudest in the Roses families. Well, if Yoshino wasn't in it then the Yellow Rose would be much like the other Roses. However, since Rei had never wanted any petite soeur other than Yoshino, she was always happy to have such a small yet loud bundle of life in her heart. She knew as the Onee-sama, she should be the one that guiding her petite soeur so that they wouldn't need to make a scene. It was quite the opposite, unfortunately. Yoshino was hard headed and she knew this before and after the heart operation that she had not long ago. If anything, her successful operation had put the younger girl to be more stubborn than before. In additional to that, Eriko had never stopped giving the girl a hard time proving herself as the rightful petite soeur for her. Everything was so troublesome when the two of them were in the same room. Then again, the moment that she had been introduced to her dearest cousin, everything had started to be troublesome.

"Rei-chan! Are you listening?" Exclaimed the younger girl with the twin braids. Rei blinked out of her thought as she turned to her cousin. They had parted with the older of the Yellow Rose family, and were on their way back to their room with Yoshino ranting on and on about the current Rosa Foetida. The short-haired blonde woman had effortlessly tuned out the younger girl's rant as she started to reminisce about her past with her cousin.

"Listening to…" Rei let her question hung as she watched the other girl's irritated expression turned into a full rage. If possible, she would want to know if the younger girl's enraged face could be the perfect place to grill meat.

"Rei-chan, you idiot!" Yoshino exclaimed once more in annoyance as she quickened her pace towards the room that they were sharing. The older girl let out a sigh as she watched her petite soeur stormed down the hallway, unlocking the door to their room before storming straight inside as she slammed the door shut with a loud _BANG!_

'_What am I going to do with you, Yoshino?'_ Rei mentally asked herself as she shook her head. There were quite a few of students around the hallway when they had heard the small commotion. She had apologized to them for her petite soeur to cause any disturbance as she walked past the girls. In return, the girls simply shook their head and murmured a 'It's nothing' or 'Don't worry about it' after they had received the apology. In truth, they had gotten used to hearing the younger girl's voice after four days of them arriving at the Strawberry Dorm. And in more honesty, they felt as if they could be the perfect roommate for the Rosa Foetida en bouton because they simply adored the taller girl. Rei was just like Ohtori Amane, the Spica Prince that all Spica Students had loved, admired and adored dearly. They could clearly see that if Rei was to challenge Amane for the title, the two would come into a tie.

Rei moved in a steady pace over to her room before reaching it. She could hear the chant of 'Baka' coming from inside the room and for a moment of standing outside, she felt afraid of coming into the room. She didn't know what Yoshino was getting so upset about, and she knew that if she wanted an answer she would have to be called an idiot for quite a lot of time. Then again, she wouldn't want to have it any other way. So heaving out a sigh, she turned the doorknob before pushing the door open. There inside their room was the pacing Yoshino as the younger girl paced back and forth with a very annoyed expression. After letting herself in, the taller girl shut the door quietly behind her and moved over to her bed before sitting down on the edges of it. She then looked up as her eyes shifted over to her beloved cousin, watching the younger girl's movement. Her life would have been dull without Yoshino in her life. At the thought of that, the corner of her lips curled up in a smile that she wasn't even aware of. So when the younger girl had noticed the smile, she had pushed her lips out into a pout along with an annoyed look on her face.

"What are you smiling about? Are you enjoying the fact that I'm annoyed and pacing around the room because you wouldn't even listen to me?" Yoshino asked as her voice rising with each word that had left her mouth. Soon enough it had became a shriek as the older girl tried very hard to not burst out laughing, though her eyes already laughed for her. "Rei-chan!"

The taller girl held her hands up in a surrender gesture while her eyes continued to dance in laughter. "I'm sorry! You're just too cute for your own good, Yoshino." She said with so much love and adoration in her tone that the younger girl had to blush. She did wonder if the younger girl had noticed her tone of voice too. If the blush was any indication that she did…_'Oh my…'_ The taller girl thought as her cheeks began to heat up lightly as a blush starting to form.

The statement seemed to calm down the younger girl and because of that, Yoshino had turned her back at the older one with her arms folded across her chest. "Rei-chan, you're an idiot…" She murmured at the older girl. Since she wasn't facing her cousin, she let loose a smile that was threatening to break out of her face. She didn't really care about the compliment or the praise that her cousin would be giving her. No, she could have cared so little about that. It was the tone from her cousin that she cared about. And when the love and adoration sounded so suitable in her ears, that it had traveled to her heart and made it comfortable and cozy in the space that she had kept for only Rei to be in, she couldn't be more than happy. Only her Rei would be able to bring a smile upon her face, no matter what kind of argument that she purposely would drag the older girl into.


	13. Chapter 13

**Thirteen**

Chikaru hadn't said anything after her mentioning the storm. The Lilian Angel didn't quite understand about the storm. She didn't come close to understand why Rosa Gigantea and Rosa Chinensis were involved in this storm. _'Didn't she say _our faces will be soaked_ instead of _their faces_?' _Shimako thought as she lay in her bed that night. Yumi had fallen fast asleep on the other side of the room, but she couldn't find sleep at this time and it was already nearing past midnight. She didn't know why this was troubling her; Chikaru's words. She didn't know why she had to stay up just to solve Chikaru's little piece of puzzle. This shouldn't really concern her when she knew that she should leave them alone. She had always left them alone to sort their problems out themselves. That would be until she couldn't stand watching them holding everything back that she had to interfere. When that happened not long ago, she felt happy because they were her friends. _'Friends…'_ Shimako silently thought to herself once more before she let out a sigh. _'I won't be able to sleep tonight..'_ The blonde concluded as she pulled herself out of the bed and looked over to Yumi's side of the room. After noticing that her roommate was fast asleep, she put on her jacket and quietly slipped out of the room. She made her way down the hallway as quietly as possible, like a ghost wandering around the hallway, and slipped out of the building to enter the cold night breeze. She found a small post in the open and moved herself towards it. Once she was under it, she let the night air caressed her cheeks as she gazed up at the night sky.

"Can't sleep?"

Came an unfamiliar voice that had got her heart to almost jump out of her ribcage. She was startled, yes, but she had acted as if the voice didn't startle her at all. So the Lilian Angel shifted her gaze from the sky and turned her attention on a tall girl with sky blue hair. The hairstyle was much more like Rei's, the Rosa Foetida en bouton. She had never seen this person before, in or out or around the campus. It was as if this person was hiding herself from the view. Then again, she hadn't seen that many people since she wasn't attending all three schools.

After realizing that her manner had gotten a little ill for staring, she quickly bowed her head in an apology before raising her head up to meet the stranger's eyes. "No, and I can assume you can't either?" She asked.

The other girl nodded and wrapped her arms around herself as she tilted her head up to the darkened sky, only a few stars and the Moon were visible to her eyes. "Yes, I thought I could come out here to get some fresh air."

Shimako nodded her head before she gazed up at the sky once more. She was still thinking about the conversation that she had with Chikaru. Added to that was Sei and Youko because she had noticed certain things about Sei but she couldn't understand them. She didn't realize that the other girl was talking to her before she felt a hand on her forearm, making her to blink out her thoughts. She looked down at the other girl and smiled softly.

"I apologize for spacing out like that. I'm not usually like this." She said before a sigh escaped her parted lips. "I apologize for having to concern you."

The taller girl shook her head and smiled at her in understanding. "It's fine. Perhaps it's just because you can't fall asleep."

Shimako sighed and nodded in agreement. "Perhaps." Before letting her gaze fall away from the other girl.

"You are Toudou Shimako, aren't you?" The taller girl asked quietly.

"Yes," Shimako responded before turning her eyes to give the other girl her attention once more. "And I'm sorry that I don't quite know who you are."

The other girl let out a low chuckle before shrugging her shoulders. "You are still new to Astrea, so it is fine. My name is Ohtori Amane, fifth grader of St Spica."

"Ah," Shimako said with a gentle smile. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Ohtori-sama."

Amane sighed as if she had been burdened by the title, and waved her hand dismissively. "Please, don't be too formal with me Shimako. You can call me Amane, and please drop the 'sama'."

Shimako looked on at the older girl in puzzlement before giggling softly. "Of course, Amane-senpai."

Amane smiled her thanks at the other girl before realizing that she still had her hand on the other girl's forearm. With a small blush, she withdrawn her hand and turned her back against the small fences. She turned her head up to look at the sky once more before letting out a sigh. "If you don't mind me asking, Shimako, what is it feel like as an exchange student?"

The Lilian Angel was surprised by the question. Sure, she had a lot of people asking this before but she had never had anyone asking the question in such a polite manner. Not only that, she was surprise that the famous St Spica Prince, Ohtori Amane, was asking her about it. Yes, she had heard of Ohtori Amane after her second day of school, thanks to Yoshino of course. The girl had talked about how Amane and Rei were so much alike that it was driving her nuts. Rei had seemed to gain more respect from Amane at first glance, and it felt like Amane was taking Rei away from her. Shimako had to sit through her lunch hour to listen to Yoshino whine about it, while Rei tried to deny everything. So having to hear about Amane was a plus, but not knowing what she looked like was a minus. At least tonight she had met the person that her friend was talking about. And like every other students that seemed to be popular among others, Shimako treated Amane like a normal human but with a respect of being a grade higher than her.

"It feels…strange somehow," Shimako responded before giggling into her hand when she saw Amane looked over at her with a confused expression. "It's the good kind of strange, Amane-senpai."

"Ah, I see." Amane replied with a small smile. "What is strange about it?"

"For starter, the Roses had no idea why we were picked to be exchange students when the Principal could have easily picked the top eight students, one from each class. Then when we entered the school, we were treated as celebrities when our main purpose is to learn about Astrea Schools and the teaching. I admit that the crowd has disbursed and we could go about freely. However, because we are the Roses they tend to treat us differently than they treat other students that have the same social status such as us."

"Differently?" Amane cut in. "What do you mean by that?"

Shimako smiled gently as she placed her hand on the taller girl's shoulder. "You are the star of St Spica, am I correct?" Noting the surprised look in Amane's eyes she couldn't help but let out a small giggle. "My friend, Shimazu Yoshino, is in your Horseback Riding Club along with her Onee-sama, Hasekura Rei. I've heard a lot about you from Yoshino," She then paused before shaking her head. "Well, not a lot, just some facts that I might want to know."

"Facts, as in?" Amane prodded gently.

"Your social status in this campus. Your interest in horseback riding." Shimako then removed her hand on the taller girl's shoulder as they came up to cover her mouth as a giggle escaped her. "Her whines about you."

Amane cheeks started to grace with a light blush as she quickly looked away. She knew what was Yoshino was whining about. She had tried her best to assure the younger member of the club that her intention wasn't to steal Rei away from her, but the younger girl was too headstrong to even listen to a word that she was saying. Even though the girl was a little loud and troublesome at times, she found herself liking the girl for her energy and determination to make the best out of everything.

"So," Amane said as she cleared her throat. "About people treating you differently?"

"Oh yes," Shimako quickly responded. "They treat us with the utmost gentleness and care as if we are the _real_ roses. I can understand why most students would find it hard to approach some of us, but we don't have thorns that would make them bleed if they want to talk to us." She let out a sigh as she shook her head. "We are not as delicate as we seem to appear to be."

"And you treat everyone as an equal." Amane stated with a soft smile. "I appreciate that you and the other Roses are treating me as an equal."

Shimako smiled warmly at her. "No one is higher than no one. We are, indeed, the same specie after all."

At that Amane let out a small laugh, one that she hadn't gotten the chance to do so lately.

**-x-**

Sachiko had been tossing around in her bed, trying to find some form of sleep but she couldn't find it. After another half an hour, she soon given up on the loss cause and sat up. She swung the bedcover to the side as she swung her legs over the edge before standing up. She had grabbed her night sweater and wrapped it around herself. She needed fresh air and this room alone wouldn't give her any of it. So she made her way out of the room, down to hallway and out into the open air. It was then that she saw Shimako standing in the moonlight. She had begun to wonder what the other girl was doing, before she noticed that Shimako had been startled by someone. Soon enough it looked like Shimako was having a visitor when she was beginning to walk over to the girl. Not one to eavesdrop, she turned and walked away to give the two some privacy. She continued to walk before she found a bench not too far from where the dorm's entrance was. Not seeing that there was anyone occupying it, she moved over to it before she was startled by a pair of arms wrapping around her shoulders. Since she knew that it wasn't ladylike to scream, she held it in and tried to relax herself.

"Oh my, you are the resistant one, aren't you?"

Came the voice that she knew so well. She closed her eyes as her forehead creased up in a frown. She yanked the arms off of her before turning to face the older girl. As sapphire blue eyes stared into the green hazel ones, one could only imagine what would happen next.

"Shizuma." Sachiko murmured through gritted teeth as she continued to stare at the older woman before her.

"Sachiko." Shizuma acknowledge her with a smirk. "Why are you up so late?"

"None of your business." Came the Ogasawara heiress' respond. She wanted to leave the woman but that would mean she would lose to the other girl. Losing was _never_ an option for her.

"Oh dear, have we gotten on the wrong path to get to know each other?" Shizuma asked in a mock concern when her eyes were dancing in amusement.

"I would think that we didn't, Shizuma." Sachiko said as she took a step forward, watching in pure victory that the other girl was taking a step backward. "However, it is wise for you to not tempt me to go down that _path_ with you."

"Maybe we should start anew," Shizuma started with a small smile. "I could easily share Nagisa with you, if you would like to share Yumi with me?"

That did it for Sachiko when she heard her petite soeur to be treated such a foul manner. So without further words, the raven-haired beauty had raised her hand up so fast that the blow that she had delivered on the older girl's face was too quick for the older girl to react. Of course, Shizuma was shocked that she had been slapped across the face, and so hard that she had stumbled for couple of feet back. The sound of Sachiko's hand connecting with her face had been echoing through her ears, if it hadn't been echoing throughout the campus by now. So when Shizuma had quickly turned her face to look at Sachiko's enraged demeanor, she knew that she was receiving Sachiko's wrath at that point.

"I advise you to leave Yumi out of whatever game you are playing with Nagisa. If you cannot find yourself to love Nagisa, do not try to take my Yumi away. At least I can fight for what I love, can you?"

With those words, Sachiko turned to move pass Shizuma without giving the other girl another glance. Shizuma was too stunned to do anything to stop her. However, the words that Sachiko had spoke pierced through her heart like an arrow. No, the words that Sachiko had spoke had crumbled the last remaining of the wall she had built up around her heart. She felt vulnerable once more, and she felt as if everything that had happened to her was her unwillingness to fight for what she loved, wanted, or needed. And at that moment, she realized what she needed to do. The problem was, would she have the courage to carry out such an honest action from her heart?


	14. Chapter 14

**Fourteen**

A new week started, along with a new unfamiliar atmosphere around the campus. The hardened demeanor that Sachiko had put up around her wasn't easily missed by her friends. Youko had tried to get the younger soeur to voice out her feelings, but she wasn't succeeding. The rest of the other Roses left her be, except for a few occasional glances that they had shot over the heiress' way. Sachiko had pretended to be oblivious to the glances whenever she was around them. She knew that they were worrying about her but she couldn't bring herself up to tell them that she and the Etoile had a fallen out. Either it was a fallen out or a huge misunderstanding she didn't know. All she knew was the hand that was holding up the teacup at the moment, was the hand that she had used to strike the older girl on the cheek. She knew that her action alone was unacceptable. However, the reason behind her action was not. Still, she was not ready to talk about it and because of that, she was unaware of the distance she had put herself between Yumi and her.

Another week had passed with no much of a single word to the other girl about her own feelings. She had noticed the slightest of fear in Yumi's eyes whenever she was talking about the girl about her day, or her classes. She had even noticed the other girl had been somewhat distant around her, like she was avoiding her. She didn't realize how badly her action and attitude had affected the younger girl until the week after. Yumi had become so distant to the point that she couldn't handle seeing the look of pure sadness before her eyes. She started to blame herself but even so she couldn't reverse the time to where she didn't have to meet Shizuma on that night. She feared that she would lose Yumi, whom that she had never imagined her life without the other girl. One way or another she had to find a way to make it up to Yumi, but she was lacking ideas.

Saturday came and Sachiko had received a word from Shimako that Yumi wasn't waking up that morning for breakfast. The Angel of Lilian was worrying about her friend but she couldn't do anything to help her out. That was all it took for Sachiko to stand from her seat, walked over to the counter to buy some snacks for her petite soeur, before leaving the cafeteria to go up to Yumi's room. When she had knocked on the door, she received no respond from the other girl. She didn't want to intrude when it would be improper for her to enter a room without permission. Well, pushing that aside she placed her hand on the knob and turned it. Once she had pushed opened the door, she noticed that the room was rather dark with the only dim light coming from the closed curtains. She let out a small sigh and entered the room, before quietly shutting the door closed behind her. She moved over to the curtains, though before placing the food on Yumi's study desk, and drawn the curtains opened. She heard a slight groan coming from behind her and stifled a small chuckle. She then unlocked the bolt from the window and pushed it open, letting the fresh air to come into the room.

"Shimako-san," Yumi let out a childish whine as she pulled the bed cover over her head. "You know that I don't want to wake up yet."

Turning her body to face the half asleep girl, she let out a disapproval sigh along with a shake of her head. "Yumi." She gently called out the girl's name and was slightly amused at the sudden still movement from beneath the cover.

'_That's Onee-sama's voice!'_ Yumi silently screamed in her head as she could feel her heart began to beat rapidly inside her ribcage. _'I'm in trouble!'_ The silent scream continued to go on in her head as she could feel her cheeks burning up with having caught for not waking up at the usual time. There was no way she could get out of this, and she knew that if she didn't get out of bed now Sachiko would come over and yank the cover away from her. Not only that, she didn't want to see the look of disappointment and anger on Sachiko's beautiful face. She had been on the receiving end of those expressions these past couple of weeks, and she was sure that she couldn't handle seeing them anymore. That was the reason why she had tried to put a distance between herself and Sachiko, so that when the older girl required her to do something, she'd be there. However, if the older girl didn't need her at all, she would slip back and hang out with either Nagisa or a few students from her classes. She simply couldn't handle Sachiko when the older girl was being immensely unapproachable.

Unfortunately, before the younger girl could muster a reply, Sachiko had quickly moved over to her side of the bed and yanked the bed cover away from her body. Yumi had felt it coming so she had shut her eyes tightly closed, not wanting to open them just to look up at the anger reflected in her Onee-sama's eyes. She then felt Sachiko's soft, tender hand on her forehead before that said hand moved down to her cheek, caressing her skin lightly.

"Are you sick, Yumi?" Asked the Ogasawara's heiress with concern dripping in every word that she spoke. She had frowned when she saw how red the other girl's face was and had decided to check the girl's temperature, hoping that her petite soeur didn't get a fever. Once she felt how hot the other girl was, her frown deepened but the frown soon disappeared when she noticed the other girl opening her eyes upon her question. And if possible, Yumi's temperature had quickly increased. "Oh my! You really are sick!" Sachiko exclaimed as she withdrew her hand. "I must get you to the infirmary!"

When the raven-haired beauty started to move to the door, Yumi had quickly shot her hand out to grab a hold of the older girl. Sachiko confused to why the younger girl had stopped her turned to look down at her in concern. "Yumi?"

"O-onee-sama, I'm fine, h-honest." Yumi stuttered quietly as she tried to calm herself down. "There's n-no need for m-me to go to the i-infirmary."

Sachiko raised her eyebrow at the girl questioningly. "You're burning up, Yumi. At least let the nurse check up on you."

Yumi shook her head. "I'm fine, really."

Sachiko let out a sigh of exasperation before she turned her body back to face Yumi. The younger girl had already sat up due to stopping her to go to the nurse, she eased herself down on the girl's bed and waited patiently for her to give out her reasons for staying in bed passed breakfast time. Yumi, sensing the older girl was waiting for her to speak up, let out a small sigh and looked away.

"Have I done something wrong, Onee-sama?" Yumi asked quietly as if she was about to break down in tears.

Sachiko stared at her petite soeur blankly while her brain registered to what the younger girl had asked her. Now she truly felt guilty for letting Yumi handle her bad behavior towards everyone, and mostly her, recently. "No, you haven't done anything wrong Yumi."

Yumi immediately turned to look at the older girl, her eyes looked like she was accusing the latter of lying. However, her brown orbs softened when she noticed the sincerity in those sapphire orbs and once more, found herself lost in them. If it wasn't for the older girl to let out a small cough, she would still be staring at those beautiful sapphire eyes just because she wanted to see her image in them. Her cheeks graced with another adorable blush as she saw the corner of Sachiko's lips curled into a knowing smile. "T-Then why were you a-avoiding me?" She asked, unable to hold back the tears as drop after drop left her eyes and hit the mattress. "D-Don't you w-want me to be around y-you anymore m-more?"

At the sight of Yumi crying Sachiko couldn't help but felt a sharp pain running through her chest. The pain of knowing that she had caused Yumi such sadness was killing her sanity. However, she had to be strong for the both of them. No matter what kind of challenges they may face in the near future, she had to be strong for them…she just had to. So swallowing back the tears of her own, she lifted up her hand and began to wipe the tears from the girl's face. Her eyes were filled out sorrow and if Yumi didn't know better, she would think that Sachiko was too cold to even shed a tear. Then again, Sachiko _did_ shed tears back in the greenhouse during the school festival. But her eyes were so different then than it was now. She didn't understand the sorrow that was reflecting in those beautiful sapphire eyes. No, she didn't even come close to understand it at all.

"Yumi, let me explain." Sachiko said softly and before she could continue on, Yumi's stomach started to make a noise to the owner's embarrassment. Sachiko only smiled in understand as she patted the girl's cheek gently before standing up and moving towards where she had put the snacks. "I figured you might be hungry so I brought you some food."

After taking the snacks from Sachiko, Yumi bowed her head respectfully with a soft murmur of "Thank you, Onee-sama."

Sachiko only smiled as she went back to the same spot she was sitting earlier. "Finish your food and I will explain." She spoke just as Yumi opened her mouth to bite down on the bun that the taller girl had given her. She watched as Yumi looked up at her with wide eyes before shaking her head in disagreement.

"I can listen, please just tell me." Yumi pleaded softly as she reached over to place her hand atop Sachiko's. The older girl smiled at the warmth that Yumi's simple touch was spreading through her and nodded.

"Alright, if that will make you happy." When Yumi beamed at her, she couldn't help but chuckle. She then sighed and looked down at the mattress. "I…struck Shizuma."

"Ehh?" Was Yumi instant respond after almost choking on her food.

"Shizuma had said…things…that were disrespectful to me. I couldn't handle it at the time due to not being able to fall asleep, so without think I raised my hand and slapped her." Sachiko sighed before she unconsciously ran her hand through the side of her hair. After realizing what she was doing, she stopped and firmly placed her hand on her lap. "This fact has been troubling me and I can't ignore it. Usually when there are situations or facts that I can't ignore, I always can come up with a solution to solve it. Unfortunately, I can't think of any solution to solve this situation. I can't think whether I am in the wrong or she is in the wrong. I've never struck another person other than my…cousin."

Yumi noted the slight change of tone when Sachiko had mentioned Suguru, her betrothed and also cousin. She had learned that the marriage was an arranged one, but she didn't have to like it. She knew that Sachiko cared deeply for Suguru but the guy didn't feel the same. However, she thanked Suguru for leaving her Onee-sama alone enough that she could spend more time with the raven-haired beauty. If the arranged engagement was not in the way, Yumi might be able to find her courage and confess to the older girl. Well, _if_ she would be able to find her courage.

"Etoile-sama hasn't been the same lately as well." Yumi stated after swallowing the chunk of food in her mouth. "Nagisa-san has been keeping her company but I notice that as soon as Nagisa-san left, Etoile-sama instantly looks upset like…" She paused to think for a bit about what she wanted to say before continuing. "Someone that has taken a precious person away from her."

Sachiko sighed and shook her head. "It might be because of something that I had said to her after I left her that night." She said quietly before she looked up at Yumi, her eyes pleading some form of guidance as if the other girl held everything that she wanted and needed in the world. "Do you think you can help me with this, Yumi?"

Yumi smiled cheerfully and nodded. "Of course, Onee-sama! First, you'd need to tell Rosa Chinensis and perhaps the rest of the Roses." Sachiko sighed and nodded in defeat. She knew that sooner or later she would have to tell them. The younger girl grinned before she hurried to finish her food. "Umm…Onee-sama?"

"Yes, Yumi?"

Yumi fidgeted slightly, not sure if she could ask the older girl to spend some time with her. It had been two weeks that she hadn't properly spent time with the older girl. They were so busy playing the hide-and-seek game that had affected both sides deeply. Yumi sighed as she tried to muster up what little bit of courage she had before she smiled shyly. "W-Would it be okay if I can s-spend more time with y-you today?"

Sachiko was hoping to hear that from her petite soeur, so she let out a warm smile and nodded her head. "Of course, I have missed my Yumi." She, once more, watched in amusement as the other girl's cheeks lightly lit up in a small blush. Until now, she still didn't know what the other girl was feeling for her. The arranged engagement still stood and she knew she could talk to her father and grandfather about it, but as the only heiress of the family, she didn't know she had the courage to do so. Because of that she had stayed quiet and silently accepted the future that had already been laid out for her.


	15. Chapter 15

**Fifteen**

She hadn't gone to sleep that night, nor did she go back into the dorm. She had watched Sachiko left with a pained heart that if was possible, would be bleeding out of her body at that point. The words that the Ogasawara heiress had struck a bigger blow to her heart, than the heiress' hand to her reddened cheek. _'At least I can fight for what I love, can you?'_ The question had been lurking around her mind for the rest of that night, and the following day. The sting from her cheek had long subdued, but the sting from her heart hadn't. The more she thought about the question, the more she found herself to fall back into the helpless girl that she was a year ago. Had she fought for the person that she loved? Had she fought for _anything_ that she once loved and cherished for?

"Of course I have!" Shizuma muttered under her breath as she leaned her back against the wall in her room on a Saturday early morning. She hadn't even gone to sleep yet. These past couple of weeks she had been going in and out of sleep. She couldn't even remember the last time she had gotten one good night sleep. She couldn't believe that she had let Sachiko's words to trouble her this much. It was like the other girl had figured out her weakness that she had been trying to hide. It just didn't make sense to her. She hadn't interacted with the raven-haired girl for that long, and she had only been trying to get some negative reaction from her that it just didn't make sense the girl could have her figured out. She knew that she wasn't _that_ obvious in revealing her only weakness to the raven-haired heiress. So how could one girl figure her out in just a span of a week?

"It's almost morning." She sighed to herself as she pulled her legs to her chest, and wrapped her arms around them. She laid her chin atop her knees and stared blankly at the white duvet. She had tried to go back to sleep hours after she had woken up, but sleep obviously was avoiding her for some unknown reasons. She knew that her two assistants would come to get her for breakfast. Well, Miyuki _would_ come to get her for breakfast while her two council members would wait patiently outside. Since it wasn't for another two hours that those three would come to get her, she decided to make that time a bit useful for her while trying to not think about the heiress' painful words.

Letting out another sigh, she pushed the bed cover away from her body and slipped out of her bed. Ever since that uneventful day, she had asked the head sister to give her a room of her own. Being an Etoile had its perks, but that perks gave her more time to soak herself in her own depression than giving her the peace that she always been seeking for. She felt that the same depression was about to get to her, so she shook her head to chase it away as she made her way towards the bathroom. Once she made it to the bathroom, she closed the door and turned the bath water on. She waited for the water to fill the bathtub before turning the tab off. She stripped out of her night gown and slipped herself into the warm water that was waiting for her. When her naked body submerged into the warm water, all the stress that she had been feeling slowly starting to slip away. Even though the stress was almost gone, the guilt started to resurface; the guilt of leading Nagisa on.

'_Have I been leading her on?'_ The silver-haired beauty thought to herself as she titled her head back to rest it against the wall behind her. She couldn't have been leading the young, beautiful red head on. She had felt an instant attraction towards the other girl when they first met. At first she only thought that the red head was just another beautiful girl, but when her hand had lightly touched the other girl's, there was some spark there. If it wasn't for that spark she wouldn't have even bothered to try and get to her. Well, that was a blatant lie. Even without the spark, she would still go out of her way to get to know the red head. There was something unique about her that she hadn't seen in any of the girls attending the schools in Astrea. The red head was full of life and she had never let anything get to her. Her smiles and laughter were infectious and contagious. Whenever Shizuma was with her she could always felt like she was soaring through the sky with the red head with happiness. Nagisa was just like a drug to her, a drug that she couldn't get out of.

'_Have I been using her for my own selfish needs?'_ She mentally asked herself as a sigh escaped her parted lips. Her feelings were in turmoil. She didn't know whether to open up her heart for the red head just so she could find the answer, or to continuing on with what she had been doing. She had known the girl for two months at the most, and those two months had been truly a blessing. Finally, after further thoughts on the matter, she decided to let her own heart lead the way instead of her head this time. If her heart wished for Nagisa, then she knew that she couldn't refuse such a request from it.

"Shizuma?" Miyuki's faint voice from outside her room brought her out of her thoughts. She couldn't help but let out a small chuckle. She hadn't thought that she had been in this bath for almost two hours. She hadn't even noticed that the water had turned cold.

If she called out an answer she'd doubt that her best friend would be able to hear her. So she stood up from the bathtub and climbed out of it. She grabbed a towel from the stand and wrapped it around her body. She then grabbed another towel to dry her hair off as she made an exit out of the bathroom. It was then that the knocking from Miyuki had gotten louder and before she could open her mouth to answer the short-haired girl, the door had then been swung opened and Miyuki had dashed inside as if there was something wrong inside her room. Shizuma stopped on her track as her best friend's eyes quickly fell on her. She watched in pure amusement as the other girl's face changed from worried to shock to embarrassment in just a mere minute.

"My, my, Miyuki, I didn't expect you to come barging in without my permission." The silver-haired beauty chuckled in amusement as the other girl's blush darkened.

Miyuki quickly turned herself around to hide her own blush. "You didn't answer when I call you, I thought there was something wrong with you so I wanted to check if you were alright."

"Well then," Shizuma said with a small smile. "Would you mind closing the door? Unless you want everyone to see me dressed like…" She gestured her hand at her towel-wrapped body. "This."

Without another word, Miyuki quickly closed the door but still keeping her body turned away from her. "You better get dressed then. We can't keep everyone waiting so you can start the prayer before breakfast."

"Oh, we can't have that now can't we?" Shizuma teased. "Would you be a dear and come help dry me off? And maybe, dress me as well?" She asked, knowing the reaction that she would get from the other girl.

Embarrassed or not, Miyuki had quickly found a magazine and had turned to toss it at Shizuma. When the other girl had ducked her head to avoid it, she had found another magazine to toss at her. That only fuelled Shizuma's amusement as she let out a light laugh. After a minute or two, the laughter died down along with Miyuki's little assault. The Miator's Student Council President straightened herself before giving her best friend a stern look. "We've wasted enough time goofing off already. Please try to be fast with getting yourself to look proper. I will wait for you outside."

With that said the short blue-haired girl turned and left the room. Shizuma only let out a small smile until Miyuki was out of her sight. She sighed and shrugged her shoulders. It had been quite some time that they had goofed off like this together. _'Yes, it has been too long to see her like this.'_ With a shake of her head she quickly dried herself off before putting on her uniform. Since she was an Etoile, she had a duty to fulfil until the next Etoile to come along.

**-x-**

She couldn't believe that she had done such a thing without thinking. She couldn't blame the other girl for her act. She did act upon her own instinct after all. She had thought Shizuma was still in bed either sick or that she was upset. Then again, if the latter had been upset then she would have responded to her when Miyuki was calling her name, right? Then how did she not think that her friend was taking a bath? Well, Shizuma had never taken a bath that bright and early in the morning for all the time she had known the girl. They were once roommates after all, until her dearest friend had become an Etoile. She had blamed herself for not trying to stop both of them for entering the Etoile Election. If it wasn't for St Miator's pride and the courage that she had given to the other Etoile that had long passed away, Shizuma wouldn't be in this situation. Well, how was she going to tell anyway?

"Idiot." Miyuki muttered to herself as she stood outside Shizuma's room. She was leaning against the closed door with her eyes set on the wooden floor. She should have known better than to chase a silly little dream that she knew she couldn't reach. If she was brave enough back then she would have told Shizuma her feelings. However, she had never been brave when it came to her feelings. She also had a betrothal that she knew one day she had to be loyal to. Her feelings for Shizuma wouldn't last long after her marriage anyway. Well, that was what she thought.

"Good morning, Rokujo-sama."

Miyuki looked up and smiled politely at the girls that were passing by. "Good morning."

'_I need to stop dwelling on this ridiculous feelings. It's not making me feel any better.'_ She sighed. Several minutes gone passed before she heard a sound coming from behind the closed door. She quickly eased off the door and moved to the side. The door was then opened, and behind it revealed the now dressed up Hanazono Shizuma ready to do her Etoile's duty. She turned to face Miyuki and smiled gently at the girl before offering the latter her hand.

"Shall we?" She asked, her eyes swirling with the amusement that she couldn't get rid off from earlier. The other girl nodded her head with a small smile before laying her hand atop of the taller girl's.

They walked hand in hand for a couple of minutes before Miyuki gently pulled her hand out of Shizuma's loose grasp. She didn't need to hold Shizuma's hand anymore. She wasn't that little girl anymore when she had come here. She was a grown woman now, and she could stand on her own. However, the feeling of Shizuma's soft skin was strong enough to stop her from pulling her hand away. If it wasn't for her courage and pride, she knew she would still be holding onto the silver-haired beauty's hand. If there was one thing she had to admit to herself that would be feeling jealous of all the fan girls around Shizuma. Since that pride was preventing her to do such a thing, that very fact had been pushed back at the back of her mind.

"Good morning, Rokujou-sama, Etoile-sama." Came Shimako's soft voice.

The two seniors stopped to smile at the Lilian Angel along with their polite responds. Miyuki was the first to notice that the other youngest of the Roses was missing. So before Shizuma had registered the fact that the brown pigtailed girl was missing, Miyuki opened her mouth and spoke with concern and curiosity in her voice. "Where is Yumi-chan this morning?"

Shimako shook her head before answering. "She is still in bed."

Shizuma observed the way Shimako had given Miyuki the answer. She knew that there was something wrong even though the blonde was hiding it so well. Nothing would be able to pass her eyes if she was really interested or curious about it. "Is she unwell?" She asked in concern.

Shimako offered both of the seniors a smile of gratitude. "Thank you for your concerns, Rokujo-sama, Etoile-sama. Yumi just stayed up too late last night so she is sleeping in."She lied effortlessly with her smile still intact. "Shall we go to the dining room together?"

"Of course, we would be delighted to walk with you." Miyuki said warmly as she flashed a glance over at Shizuma. The taller girl blinked before nodding with a smile of her own.

"Of course, let's not keep them waiting any further." She responded before the three of them began to advance towards the dining hall. It wasn't until long that the two seniors heard the soft giggle coming from the younger girl. When they turned to look at her in confusion, the blonde just shook her head before she gestured her head over to the opened dining hall.

"My apologies, but I would doubt that they are waiting for you. As you can see, the seats haven't been filled yet. So most likely, you _will_ be waiting for them to arrive." The blonde said lightly as she tried to ease up the tension she could feel after she had told them about Yumi.

Both of the older girls chuckled and nodded as the three of them entered the dining hall. Once they gave the room a look over, they nodded before looking over to Shimako. "You are right," Shizuma said. "Although I do not mind waiting, however, I suppose your Onee-sama seems to not be able to wait for you to join her." She stated as the current Rosa Gigantea was waving her hand at Shimako, signalling the girl to come to her.

Shimako let out a giggle before she turned and bowed respectfully at the two Miator seniors. "Thank you for walking me here, Rokujo-sama, Etoile-sama."

"It is our pleasure." Miyuki responded. Shimako offered them one last smile that morning before she turned and made her way to Sei. Miyuki turned to look at Shizuma whom was looking at the departed girl. She giggled slightly. "Lovely girl, isn't she?"

Shizuma chuckled before turning to Miyuki. "She is. It is too bad that she seems uninterested to either of us." And before Miyuki could let out another lecture about her not being interested in any women, the silver-haired beauty had quickly moved away from her while chuckling in amusement as the latter was following her with a small frown.


	16. Chapter 16

**Sixteen**

The red head Aoi Nagisa seemed to be lost in thoughts in the morning this Saturday's morning. Her roommate didn't make a comment on it, not when the blue hair girl could only watch and worry about her dearest friend from afar. Despite the fact that she was interested in Shimako and Sachiko, she couldn't stop herself from loving Nagisa more each day. Tamao knew that her roommate and love interest had gained a few new friends, or rather, eight new friends and they seemed to be the exchange students, and even though that Nagisa spent a little more time with them, including Hanazono Shizuma, she was a tad bit jealous. Sure, she got Nagisa every morning and every night, but in the afternoon the girl always seemed to be off somewhere without telling her where she'd be until later. She only wanted to take care of her Nagisa, even though Nagisa didn't belong to her or anyone. Actually, she had a small idea that Nagisa might as well belonged to Shizuma, if the older girl would have her. Tamao had watched the older girl while Nagisa was around her. There was something changing in the current Etoile and she was afraid that Nagisa might fall victim to whatever Shizuma was planning to do with her.

"Oi?' _Snap. Snap. Snap._

Tamao seemed to be so deep in her own thoughts that she didn't notice someone's hand snapping fingers before her at lunch. She was still trying to analyze everything in her head from Nagisa's relationship with Shizuma to Nagisa's newfound friendship with all the Roses.

"Earth to the slightly confused adorable girl that is Yumi's friend ~ "

Tamao could used a little less distraction if that hand and that voice would leave her be. _'Hand and voice?'_ Tamao silently asked herself as she slowly came back into reality. There, in front of her, was one of the beautiful Roses that she had been seeing walking around the Strawberry dorm. She had took the time to memorize every single of the Roses' names, even noted down who was friendly and who was overly friendly. The older girl before her was Sato Sei, the _overly friendly_ Rosa Gigantea that she had mentally noted down in her head. She was surprise to see the sixth grader here. Not only that, she was even surprised that the older girl was trying to get her attention.

"I'm sorry, is there something I can help you with?" The blue hair girl quickly answered after her head was a hundred percent focusing on the beautiful blonde in front of her.

Sei chuckled before she mentioned to the exit door of the cafeteria. "Do you mind taking a walk with me?" She asked gently.

Tamao waited for a few seconds to see if the older girl would explain why the blonde had asked her but not the other Roses. When she didn't get a respond, she let out a small sigh with a little shrug of her shoulders. "Of course, although I expect to have an explanation as to why you have picked me to have a walk with."

As Tamao stood up, Sei blinked before she let out a small chuckle. The blonde was expecting the other girl to ask such a question. She would only hope that the younger girl could provide her with some good advices because she didn't know where to ask if she had gone to the St Lulim's Student Council President. "Sure, I'll tell you along the way after we get out of this cafeteria."

Tamao nodded and soon they both left the cafeteria together while the remaining students in the cafeteria just watched them went. They both expected to hear some kind of rumors about Tamao and the Lilian's Rosa Gigantea taking a walk together that would surely lead to a blossoming romance. The two girls didn't care though, not when they knew that it wasn't true. Tamao expected nothing more from this walk with the blonde, and the blonde was expecting a good friendly advice from the blue hair girl. So in their case, it was a win-win situation.

Once they had gotten out of the cafeteria and onto the path that was leading out of the Strawberry dorm, Tamao glanced over to the taller girl expecting that the latter would be the first one to talk. When it seemed like the taller girl wasn't anywhere near ready to talk, she just sighed and looked ahead of her. The two walked in an awkward silent for about five minutes where the blonde was leading Tamao out into the shore of the lake. Tamao never did once question where Sei was leading her because she trusted the older girl to not try anything silly. So when the awkward silent had gotten too much for the energetic blonde to handle, the current Rosa Gigantea let out a sigh as she ran a hand through her hair.

"I'm actually here to ask you about advices. Shimako said that you give good advices to Yoshino-chan, Yumi-chan and Nagisa-chan. So I thought maybe I could ask for the same favor that you've given them?" Sei asked softly as she turned to look at the other girl with a little hope in her eyes.

Although the younger girl was surprised by the sudden request, Tamao just nodded her approval before asking curiously. "What do you need my advice for, Sato-sama?"

Sei blinked. "Sato-sama?" Then she began to giggle and shook her head. "That sounds too formal, Tamao-chan. Get rid of the 'sama' and we'd be fine."

'_These Roses are so nice.'_ Tamao thought as she smiled up at the older girl. "Alright, Sato-san. What kind of advice do you want to hear?"

Sei thought for a moment while her feet continued to move towards the lake. It was a rather moment until she could come up with a proper answer when her head was filled with confused feelings for the roommate she was rooming with. So once she had found a proper answer, they were already at the lake and she couldn't be more than happy to see that the younger girl was patiently waiting for her.

"It's about emotions, if you don't mind me telling you some bits of it." After the younger girl had given her the permission to continue by a positive motion of her head, Sei smiled as she leaned against the tree behind her while her eyes looked out to the beautiful lake. "I'm not quite sure what I am feeling for a particular someone at this moment," She started. "I'm all confused and she makes me even more confused as to why she is so nice to me, and is always there when I need _someone_ the most. It's like she always knows what I am thinking or…_feeling_!" She sighed and shook her hand, unaware that her hands had curled into fists. "It's so damn frustrating!"

Tamao watched silently as the older girl spoke to her about her feelings for this certain girl. She wondered who it might have been, and she couldn't take a guess when it might as well be a right guess. When Sei had first started to tell her the story, she had suspected it to be Chikaru but it turned out that it wasn't. It couldn't possibly be any one at Astrea Hill, Sei didn't know anyone for that long. So it had to be one of the Roses, and yet she couldn't tell which one it would be. It could possibly be Shimako but the younger blonde was so much alike with the older one. The Yellow Roses didn't seem to be much of an interest to the older White Rose. So it had to be the Red Roses. The only Red Rose she could name that had been receiving was Fukuzawa Yumi. However, the more she looked at those two, the more she realized that the relationship between those two couldn't pass the friendship zone.

"I honestly at a loss here." Sei sighed in defeat that brought Tamao out of her thoughts.

"Why don't you talk to that particular person?" Tamao suggested as she looked over at the older girl. "Or perhaps you could try and ask her out on a date and see it from there?"

Sei quickly looked over at her in a little surprise. "Ask her out on a date?"

Tamao nodded with a gentle smile. "Yes, you could give it a shot. Besides, it doesn't have to be a romantic date."

Sei thought over it for a moment before nodding her head in agreement. "Thank you Tamao-chan. I think I would try that."

**-x-**

"Are you sure that you saw Rosa Gigantea with a girl from St Miator, Yoshino?" Rei asked in disinterest as she continued to brush the coat of the horse that she had been entrusted with. She had never ridden a horse before, and when she first saw it while exploring the St Spica campus, she had quickly fallen in love with the horse that she was now taken care of. Even though horses weren't easy to take care of but she felt calm and at ease just working on one.

Yoshino was standing next to her, watching at cousin as the other girl brushed the horse. The younger girl had her hands on her waist as she stared at the taller girl as if to yell at her for not paying attention to her. She had seen Rosa Gigantea walked off with Tamao, a girl from St Miator and also Nagisa's friend and roommate. She had smelt something fishy going on between the two, but she couldn't quite put her fingers into it. It was rare for Rosa Gigantea to go up to a girl that she had never conversed with, and requested for the girl to take a walk with her. She wanted to know what was going on. In fact, she wanted to know everything since she had absolutely nothing to put her nose in. The students at these schools were too…polite. Too nice. Too everything that was positive and there wasn't enough drama! Actually, the only drama that was going on would be around Ohtori Amane being aware of her reputation at St Spica. _'Oh I am _sure_ that she is aware!'_ She rolled her eyes at the Toumori Shion's worthless effort of pressuring Amane in admitting it.

"Why are you rolling your eyes?" Rei asked as she watched her cousin getting lost in her own thoughts.

"What? I did?" Yoshino asked as she stared at her cousin as if the older girl was an alien. Then she waved a hand in front of her in a dismissive manner before going back to the topic that she was there for. "Anyway, who cares about that? I'm telling you that I saw Rosa Gigantea walking towards the Strawberry Lake with Suzumi Tamao-san! I heard that Rosa Gigantea had gone up to her and requested if she could have a walk with her! I mean what is all that about? She doesn't even know Tamao-san! And…."

While Yoshino went on about how ridiculous it was for Sei to walk up to a girl she didn't even know and requested her to join in for a walk, Rei just zoned out and watched her cousin in silent. Yoshino looked to be very curious at this strange development between this Tamao and Rosa Gigantea, but the short hair blonde didn't really care about the story behind it. She only cared about Yoshino at this point and how the girl was getting so fired up about such silly things. The way the younger girl's lips were moving so fast that she had the urge to cover her hand over it. Although, she'd much rather use her lips to do so. _'Wait, what did I just think?'_ Rei mentally chided herself as her cheeks began to warm up into a small blush. At that point Yoshino was frowning at her since the younger girl knew she wasn't even listening!

"Rei-chan! You're an idiot!" Yoshino suddenly yelled at her before she turned around and angrily made her way out of the horse barn. Rei just blinked at her when the yell had pulled her back out of her thoughts. She knew that she was going to get in trouble with the younger girl much later, and that she should try to get the other girl's forgiveness and forget about her horse, but she just couldn't do it. With a sigh, she shook her head in disappointment in herself for not even paying attention to her cousin.

"She's very energetic, isn't she?" Came a voice from behind her. Once she turned to look at the owner of the voice, Rei gave a nod in acknowledgement before sighing again.

"Yes, she is. I apologize for the trouble that she may have caused you, Amane-san."

Amane just smiled and waved a hand to dismiss the topic. "It's no trouble at all." When she noticed that Rei wasn't making any attempt to run after her roommate, she lifted her hand and gestured it over to the horse that Rei was starting to brush again. "I'll do that for you. I think you should go and talk to Yoshino before she really gets angrier."

Rei just chuckled and shook her head before she handed Amane the brush. "Thank you, Amane-san, you might have saved me this time."

Once the Spica Prince had taken the brush and offered a kind smile, Rei turned and walked off to the direction that Yoshino had gone to. _'I honestly don't know what to do with her anymore.'_ The Rosa Foetida en bouton thought with a shook of her head, and a small sigh. If only she knew what her petite soeur was truly thinking.


	17. Chapter 17

**Seventeen**

Monday quickly came and already rumors had started to spread about Rosa Gigantea and Suzumi Tamao. The rumor had started out as _'Love Interest'_ to _'The beautiful Rosa Gigantea is dating the infamous Suzumi Tamao'_ to _'They are deeply in love within a day'_. It was ridiculous to the subjected girls but it wasn't ridiculous to those that heard it. The ones that knew Sato Sei for years didn't believe in the rumors. In fact, they had chosen to ignore it as if the rumors weren't good enough for their attention. However, the only Rose member that seemed troubled by it was Mizuno Youko. Her calm expression didn't quite give that away, but in her heart and mind were the rumors that kept repeating themselves. She had tried her best that lunch time to ignore the rumors that had started after her first morning class. The rumors didn't go away as they kept coming back to rudely tease her of her cowardness. So after dinner the Rosa Chinensis had retired herself to her room with an excuse of being exhausted from a long day. Instead of just sitting with her back against the wall on her bed, she had decided to take a bath and sunk her body into the hot water as if to sink all of her troubles away. Unfortunately for her, it didn't quite happen the way she wanted it to.

'_What is wrong with me? All the other Roses don't even pay attention to the rumors, why should I?'_ She chided herself as her body continued to sink lower into the bath. _'Why the hell should I? It's not like they're true! Are they…true?'_ Her thoughts quickly became lost as the rumors started to bother her once more. She let out a low groan but the sound was muffled by the bath water. There was a sound from outside the bathroom door that she heard, though it was faint so she didn't pay much attention to it. It possibly was Sei coming into the room anyway. Who else could it had been if it wasn't Sei? Besides, Sei wouldn't be the one knocking on the bathroom door for permissions. _'She would just enter like she owns the place…'_ She thought as she slowly came up from the water and stared over at the door. She wondered who it could be that would enter the room without permission.

"Onee-sama?"

'_Well, that answers my question.'_ She thought as she let out a sigh that she didn't know she was holding. "Give me a few minutes and I'll be out, Sachiko." Youko called out softly and received an affirmation from the other girl. She soaked herself in the water bath a little bit more before deciding that it was enough, and she didn't want to make her petite soeur waiting on her. She made quick movement to dry herself before wrapping a towel around her body. Then she proceeded to dry her hair with another towel. The older girl then walked out of the bathroom and over to her nightgown that she had laid on her bed. She nodded her head at her petite soeur to let the younger girl know that she had noticed her presence, before she dropped her towel and put on the nightgown.

Sachiko had looked away to give her grande soeur some privacy. However, she couldn't help but be concerned about her. It was the petite soeur's job to ensure that their grande soeur was happy after all. "Are you alright, Onee-sama?" The Ogasawara heiress asked softly as she turned to look at the older girl with concern evidently shown in her sapphire eyes.

Youko turned to offer the other girl a smile of assurance. "I'm fine, thank you for asking Sachiko." When she noticed the other girl's small frown she couldn't help but be concerned about it. After all, Sachiko rarely showed her emotions around others except when she was in private with Youko or Yumi. "However, are you doing alright Sachiko?"

The frown quickly disappeared as she knew she had been caught. She let out a sigh with her eyes closed and a light shake of her head. "I'm just worrying about you, Onee-sama." She murmured an answer before she opened her eyes to look up at her Onee-sama. "You seemed a bit off during lunch today, then you excused yourself to your room after dinner. I know that you said you were exhausted, but Onee-sama, you should know that I can see through you by now. So please, if there is anything that you would like to get out of your chest, _your burdens_, I am here for you."

Youko was slightly taken by surprise for her petite soeur's boldness. Then again, she didn't expect less from Sachiko. So she crossed the small space that separated the two of them and laid a hand on the younger girl's face. Her thumb lightly stroking the girl's skin gently while a smile of gratitude graced her lips. "Thank you, Sachiko. That means a lot to me."

At that moment Sei opened the door and let herself in, only to stop herself at the door when she saw the tender look on Youko's face while the short hair girl's hand was upon Sachiko's cheek. She felt like she had interrupted their moment and because of that she felt bad about it. So she quickly mumbled out an apology before closing the door. Youko looked up and sighed, shaking her head at the already departed blonde. "She must have misunderstood us."

Sachiko blushed and nodded. "She will come around, Onee-sama."

Shock by what she just heard, Youko quickly turned her attention back to the younger girl before her and raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean, Sachiko?"

The heiress let out a small giggle before she took her Onee-sama's hand in hers, and patted the back of the older girl's hand gently. "You know what I mean, Onee-sama." She replied before a little smirk appeared at the corner of her lips. "You know _exactly_ what I mean." And with that, the heiress let go off of Youko's hand and stood up, bidding the older Chinensis' rose a good night before leaving the room to go to her own.

Youko was standing there a little dumbfounded that her petite soeur could read her so easily. When the words finally sunk in, she let out a long sigh before moving back to her own bed and collapsed on the soft mattress. She looked up at the ceiling before shaking her head. Sei wouldn't come around with the person that had left her took the blonde's heart with her. She couldn't even retrieve it if she tried. Sei had locked her heart up and wouldn't allow anyone to reach it. She, Youko, could try to reach it but she was afraid to do so. She was afraid of rejection. She was afraid that Sei would reject her. She was afraid of tasting that small taste of defeat. She was just…afraid.

-**x-**

'_What was that just then?'_ Sei asked herself as she decided to take a small walk before returning to her room. She had just only walked in on Sachiko and Youko, and it looked like the two girls were busy with…whatever it was that she had walked in. She sighed and shook her head. What was that emotion that she felt when she had walked in? Disappointment? Sadness? Jealousy? She shook her head once more to clear out the confusion thoughts while knowing that they would just come back once more. A moment later she decided to head back to her room. When she rounded the corner, she noticed a certain raven hair leaving her room. Breathing out a sigh of relief for not going to witness that scene again, the current Rosa Gigantea walked up to the room of her door and opened it. Upon entering the room, she noticed that Youko was lying on her bed with a blank expression. Not wanting to bother her roommate, and the woman that had gotten her all confused, Sei took her night wear to the bathroom and decided to take a shower before bed. Then again, it was too early to go to sleep. She might have to stay up and look over her notes.

After the shower, she went to dry herself off before slipping the overlarge shirt over her. She opened the bathroom door and entered the bedroom only to see that Youko had sat up on her bed. The Rosa Chinensis looked troubled from something and she wanted to find out why, but without having to offend the girl. She decided just to ask. After all, Youko was her friend.

"Youko?" She asked gently as she lowered her body so her face was on the same level as the other girl's. When she didn't get a reply, she sighed before trying again with a different approach. "Rosa Chinensis."

The said girl blinked out of her reverie and her eyes quickly fell upon the blonde's face. When she noticed how close her face was to hers, the short hair girl tried her best not to blush as she looked straight into the blonde's gaze. "I'm sorry, I must have zoned out. Is there something you want to say, Sei?"

Sei leant back as she folded her arms across her chest. "You seem to be troubled by something. Do you mind to share it? I am your friend _and_ roommate after all."

Youko smiled in gratitude and shook her head at her friend's concern. "Thank you for your concern, but I am fine."

The blonde didn't take that as her answer though. And even though she wanted to push the answer out of the other girl, but she felt like it wasn't her place to do so. So she just shrugged with a mumble, "OK" before she went back to her own bed. She pulled out a notebook from her bag before rolling over on her stomach, and started reading the notes that she had taken in class today. After several minutes, she heard movement from the other side of the room so she made a small peak over to it. She saw Youko stood up and made her way towards her. Sei had reverted her eyes when she saw the movement, and had pretended that she was focusing on her notes than the other girl. When she felt a soft hand on her shoulder, she paused and turned to look up at the owner of the hand. There, standing before her, Youko was looking at her with a pained expression that she didn't know if it was her fault that Youko had looked that way, or if there was a meaning behind it. She closed her book and pulled herself up before patting the spot next to her to Youko. The latter smiled in thank as she took the offered seat. The two girls sat there in silence before the Rose Chinensis decided to break it.

"Are they true?" She asked, hoping that those rumors weren't true and she knew that she wasn't making her question specific enough for the other to understand, but she wouldn't be able to handle the rumors being spoken aloud when they were already clouding her mind.

Thankfully, Sei understood what the other girl was asking. She had to chuckle that her friend would actually care about such things, which only led her to another question as to why Youko even let the rumors bothered her so. "No, they are not true. If you want, I can tell you the reason behind my request to ask Tamao-chan to walk with me that day."

After hearing that it wasn't true, her mind eased up a bit. Although curious as to why Sei had asked the girl to take a walk with her, Youko decided not to meddle into Sei's affair for the first time as she shook her head. "No, it's fine. All I want to know is whether the rumors are true or not."

Sei smiled and placed her hand atop the other girl's, watching as a blush slowly graced Youko's cheek as the latter turned away to hide it. She found it amusing but kept her mouth shut to further embarrass her companion. "If that is all that you want to know, then can I ask a favor from you?" When she got a nod from Youko, the blonde smiled and continued. "Would you care to accompany me to town on Sunday?"

Surprised by such a request, Youko turned to look at Sei just to see if the other girl was playing a game on her. The hopeful look on Sei's face was enough to tell her that the blonde wasn't playing a game on her. So Youko smiled and nodded. "Of course, do you want me to ask the others if they would- "

"No!" Sei quickly interrupted then blushed when she realized she had raised her voice. So she cleared her throat as if there was something stuck in her throat after the outburst. "I mean, it's just going to be the two of us."

Youko studied the blonde's expression for a bit, trying to find out the girl's motive behind such a request before she mentally gave up. "Alright, what do you want to do on that day then?"

Sei blinked. She didn't even think as far as asking Youko out on a date. Well, the latter didn't say anything about a date, and since she didn't even say anything about it being a date she could try and relax. However, she didn't even think that Youko would accept her invitation for an outing. So now, she was stuck in trying to think of something the both of them could do in town. While Sei was having a little trouble answering the question, Youko giggled at the expression that Sei was making before she patted Sei's arm to gain the blonde's attention.

"You don't have to answer right away. I bet you didn't even plan out to ask me out on a date, did you?"

Sei's eyes began to widen only for a couple of seconds before she sighed and shook her head. "So, I've been caught."

Youko laughed softly before she stood up and moved over to her side of the room. "Actually, I didn't think that you would even ask me. I thought you would be more interested in Yumi-chan."

It was Sei's turn to laugh. "Yumi-chan? Oh boy, I do not want to be the victim of Sachiko's wrath."

Both of the girls laughed as they began to imagine what the Ogasawara heiress would do if Sei had actually ask Yumi on a date, or even proclaim that Yumi was the property of Sei. All hell would break lose that was for sure.

The laughter died down and soon enough both of them bid each other a good night. Sei had turned off the light while Youko got under the cover of her bed. Even though she didn't want Sei to know that the request had made her night, but her heart was now racing as it anticipated the Sunday to come. Now she had something to look forward to, and that something didn't involve school relation work.


	18. Chapter 18

**Eighteen**

The unexpected event had arrived to the Astrea schools. All three Student Council Presidents had been informed of this event but the administrations of the schools. They were to carry it out within the next couple of weeks, and since this would be an event between the three all girls school and two all boys schools, they had to come up with an activity that would get the girls and the boys to mingle with one another. The Student Council Presidents had thought it to be ridiculous but since they were the only three that thought it was, they weren't quite sure if the rest of the girls would think the same. Of course, they had no problem interacting with males, but those males were only from their families and they weren't strangers. So, how were they to interact with a bunch of males from another school that they hadn't met, or heard before? That was why they were stuck in the meeting room a little longer than usual on a Wednesday afternoon. Classes had been over and curfew was so far away. The only problem was that the Etoile didn't seem to even care what event the other three had come up with. As long as she didn't have to watch Nagisa being sweep off of her feet by some idiotic male, she was fine with it.

"Ballroom dancing." St Spica Student Council President said with a straight face. Her life away from the male population had been good so far, and she would rather have to worry about it after she'd graduate from high school, not now. Her family had somewhat of a high expectation when it'd come to her marriages. And in all honesty, she had never once thought of having a man as her spouse. Then again, she had never once thought of settling down when she hadn't achieved anything in her life yet.

St Lulim Student Council President just watched Toumori Shion's plain expression with an inaudible sigh. "I guess Toumori-san's idea is nice. A ballroom dancing so all of the girls and boys can get to know one another. However, what shall the theme be?" Once the question had been lifted into the air, ideas started to pour in Minamoto Chikaru's head that got her to be concerned about the size of her head being invaded by so many ideas.

"How about a Victorian theme?" Miyuki suggested. She knew that she hadn't even met her betrothal yet, but she had heard from her father that her husband-to-be was the same age as hers, though a few months older. She hadn't called home to tell her father about this ridiculous event yet. Her motive behind the upcoming phone call was to find out if her fiancé would be in one of these two all boys school.

Chikaru pouted a little at the theme. The Victorian theme would be nice and all, but where all the fun in that if they all had to dress up and just attend the dance. It would be much more fun if they had to guess who was who. That was when another idea struck her. She turned to beam at Miyuki before adding. "A Victorian Masquerade Theme! What do you guys think?"

"Masquerade?" Shion asked as she gave it a thought. Then she smiled and nodded in approval. "That sounds interesting. At least we should give these boys something to look forward to."

All eyes turned toward Hanazono Shizuma, the Etoile of the three schools, as they waited for the silver hair beauty's approval. Shizuma sighed and mentally shook her head. Everything that the council presidents had discussed about, she had to be dragged into it so the events or decisions could be carried out. She let her eyes roamed around the meeting table before giving out a small sigh. "I have absolutely no issues with a Victorian Masquerade Theme."

Shion and Miyuki only let out a small relief sigh as if Shizuma held the power to all of their decisions, while Chikaru only beamed in her seat. Now she had an extremely good excuse to design her own dresses and, of course, anyone else's dresses if they even trusted her to design the dress for them. Since it was going to be in a couple of weeks, she had to start on designing them soon and actually making them. Oh, this was going to be very fun for her.

The meeting finally finished and Shizuma finally could have some time to breathe. She knew that she had to help out with the decoration and preparation of the event soon, but right now all she wanted to do was breathe and find Nagisa. The curfew was an hour and a half away, so she knew that Nagisa would be around outside of the dorm somewhere. She began to search her memories of where Nagisa would most likely be, and when the Greenhouse came into mind, she smiled and started heading towards the place. On the way there she had noticed the Roses to be quite close to one another except for two other Roses. While the other Roses had paired up, only the youngest White Rose and the oldest Yellow Rose were the single ones. Now she wasn't one to meddle with these kinds of things. Then again, she wasn't one to meddle at all! But because of her curiosity she stopped just outside the lounging area and looked towards where the Roses were gathering. Toudou Shimako and Torii Eriko were sitting quietly sipping their tea, while the other Roses were chattering away. Eriko would put in a few comments here and there, while Shimako only sat there and observed everyone with a serene smile.

"Etoile-sama?"

Shizuma quickly tore her eyes away from the Roses and turned to look at the girl that she was just about to go and look for. A smile naturally appeared on her beautiful features and soon enough got the red head to blush adorably. "Hello, Nagisa. Were you just passing by or am I blocking your way inside?"

Nagisa quickly shook her head before smiling up at the silver hair beauty before her. "No, no, not at all!" The taller girl chuckled amusedly as the girl stumbled over her words. "Umm…Would it be alright with you…Can I -"

"Nagisa-chan!" A bright and cheerful voice called out from inside the lounging area. When the two girls turned to look inside, they saw Tamao quickly approaching toward them. The red head let out a sigh and just shrugged the disappointment off. Her friend couldn't have picked the right time to interrupt them.

"Tamao-chan…"

The red head's roommate came up to the two girls and smiled happily at Nagisa, then turned to give Shizuma the look that said '_She's mine'_. "Come on, everyone is waiting for you!" The blue hair girl said as she grabbed a hold of Nagisa's hand before pulling the girl away from Shizuma. The silver hair beauty just watched on with an amused smile on her face until she turned away from the lounging area, the amused smile had quickly being replaced by an annoyed frown. She rarely could spend some time with Nagisa, and when she actually had some free time Tamao had to turn up and steal the object of her affection away. Well, she hoped that during the event, she'd get to have Nagisa all to herself.

Friday came that week and the event proposal had been announced publicly on the Strawberry Dorm's notice board. The majority of the girls were excited about the dance, not to mention about the boys as well. They may have girl crushes on the popular girls at school, but not all of them were actually interested in girls. They also never judged those that were interested in girls, not when most of those girls were the ones that they admired and looked up to. Well, while they were excited about the event that would happen in just a couple of weeks, the girls that already had girlfriends or were about to confess their feelings to one another didn't feel like they should be attending at all. Unfortunately, since all students were obligated to attend any sort of events that the three schools had to offer for them, they had to attend whether they wanted to or not. Among all the students there, Ogasawara Sachiko. Of course the heiress had to attend such formal parties that her mother had hosted and demanded her presence, she still wasn't too happy with all the men ogling at her like she was a piece of meat to them. Since their faces were no strangers to her, and they were in her family's venue, she didn't feel as afraid as having to actually speak to a man that was a stranger to her.

"Sachiko."

The heiress looked up at her Onee-sama from her teacup. "Yes, Onee-sama?"

Youko smiled softly at her petite soeur before she reached over and grasped at the girl's hand gently. "I know that you don't like to attend to events with boys that you don't know. However, you do know that you can't turn away from this dance, don't you?"

Sachiko sighed. "Yes, it is one of the school's obligation." Even though she wasn't one to admit defeat, she couldn't erase the school's rules.

Yumi reached over to place a hand atop of her Onee-sama's hand. "I'll be there, Onee-sama. I'll be by your side until the dance ends."

Sachiko squeezed the hand of her petite soeur and turned to smile at the younger girl. "Thank you, Yumi."

Youko retracted her hand and leaned back with a small smile. She was happy to see that her petite soeur had found someone to love and actually be loved in return. That only got her to think of the date on Sunday with Sei. So she turned her head over to gaze at Sei as the taller girl happily chatted with Shimako. When the blonde noticed Youko looking at her, she flashed a charming smile at the short dark hair girl making the latter to turn her head away to hide her blush. Sei chuckled as she turned to chat with Shimako once more.

"It's a Victorian Masquerade Theme!" Yoshino said excitedly as she started to bounce in her seat. Rei just shook her head at her cousin's giddy behavior. "Should we go shopping? Oooh, what should we wear?"

Yumi turned to look at her friend and soon enough she quickly found herself bouncing in her seat too. However, she stopped when Sachiko shot her a look that got the pigtailed girl to blush and halted her excitement. That didn't stop Yoshino to still be excited about the dance that was going to happen in two weeks. And that excitement didn't go unnoticed by a particularly Student Council President, Minamoto Chikaru. She was just passing through to go to where Kagome was sitting when she overheard the excited conversation from Yoshino. She giggled to herself before she turned to face the Roses.

"Good day everyone." She said cheerfully as the Roses looked up at returned the greeting with a smile. "I was passing by when I hear all the excitement coming from Yoshino-chan and Yumi-chan and I couldn't help but to stop by and possibly…pitch in." She added with a little giggle as Yumi joined her.

"Chikaru-sama, we were just discussing about the dresses." Yoshino said with her eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Dresses? Ooh, can I help in that department?" Chikaru asked as she clasped her hand together with a hopeful look.

"Help?" Eriko asked as she tilted her head to the side. "How can you help, Chikaru?"

Chikaru smiled with a hint of mischievous in her eyes. "I can design the dresses."

That was then that Yoshino stood up from her seat and went straight to Chikaru. The younger girl then clasped the Lulim's Student Council President by the hands and started to bounce in her place. "Really? Can you help me design mine?"

The long beautiful ebony hair girl smiled at braided brunette girl before her. _'She's so full of life!'_ Thought Chikaru as she giggled at the girl's reaction to her being able to design dresses. "Of course, do you have any ideas on what you might want your dress to look like?"

Yoshino paused to think for a short moment before she nodded. "Yes! When can we start, Chikaru-sama?"

While the girls chattered away about their dresses, the other Roses just looked on with amused looks on their faces. They were anxious about seeing one another's dresses. They already had an idea on what they wanted in a dress. All they had to do was go shopping for it or actually join up with Yoshino and Chikaru in designing their own. However, there was only one Rose member knew that she wasn't going to be wearing a dress because of a cousin of hers. The girl wanted her to wear a tuxedo, that was for sure. The Rosa Foetida en bouton let out a sigh that her grande soeur heard from sitting next to her. The older Rosa Foetida placed a hand on her petite soeur's shoulder and smiled softly when the younger blonde turned to look at her.

"Is there something troubling you, Rei-chan?" Eriko asked in mild concern.

Rei shook her head as the corner of her lips lifted up into a small smile. "Nothing, Onee-sama. Absolutely nothing."

Even though Eriko refused to take that as an answer but she left it as it was now. Later during the next week she'd probably going to find out anyway. One way or another.

* * *

_A/N_

__Okay, I don't know what I'm thinking, but they need some nice event other than just waltz through the school days with unnecessary drama, right? :3


	19. Chapter 19

**Nineteen**

The date with Youko went quite well if Sei had to say so herself. However, the whole date revolved around shopping for ballroom dresses and heels. She wasn't sure how long she had allowed Youko to pull her from store to store just to look for the right dress or the right pair of heels. She didn't mind it one bit, not when Youko wasn't so adamant about getting her to be in a dress. If she was going to attend to that event, she wasn't going to turn up in a dress and let the boys drooling all over her. Then again, she wasn't sure how the boys would react if she'd turn up in a tuxedo. She did try on several tuxedos and see what she'd look like. And every time she did, she noticed Youko couldn't stop looking at her until she had to go to the changing room. When she had teased Youko about it, she was delighted to see the blush on the other girl's face and the cute denial that sputtered out of Youko's lips. The date also helped her sort out her feelings for the other girl. When she was with Youko, alone, she didn't feel like she had to put on that happy mask while she was around her. Youko's presence alone made her feel more like herself, more like the Sei that she had wanted to be after…_her_.

Sei quickly shook the thought of her former lover out of her mind. That girl still had a small part of her heart. However, that small part had died while the rest was being gently fixed up by Youko. Sei didn't know why the Rosa Chinensis would even bother with her broken self, but she was thankful for the short dark hair girl to look out for her and be there for her whenever she'd need her. Returning the girl's feelings wasn't enough for Sei. Youko had done so much for her already and just simply returning the feelings wasn't at all enough. The Rosa Gigantea wanted to do something more for her, but knowing the fact that she couldn't forget about her past lover she couldn't wholeheartedly give her heart to the woman that she was starting to love. She needed to make sure that the love that she had for _her_ was no longer there. But, how was she to be sure when she hadn't met _her_ after that uneventful night?

"Sei?" A gentle hand was placed on her shoulder but the touch was too faint for the blonde to notice. "Sei?" A gentle shake of her shoulder finally brought her out of her thoughts. She looked up to see a concern look from her classmate, Chikaru, and tried as she must but her smile didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Yes, Chikaru?"

Chikaru studied the blonde's face before her, trying as best as she could to pierce through the other girl's happy mask so she could see the real Sei, but to no avail. She withdrew her hand then and shook her head more to herself than at her companion. "You were spacing out all through the lecture. I'm just checking if you are alright."

Sei smiled in appreciation. "Thank you." And with her thanks, she earned a warm smile from the other girl. The two weren't oblivious to the fact that their classmates were looking at them in admiration and awe. Also, they weren't deaf enough to hear the positive comments about their relationship with each other, while knowing that they would never be so they had to quietly giggle and, of course, would make jokes to one another sooner or later.

Lunch slowly came on a Monday, and that was enough to make one of the Lilian's students rather irritated. Although her face didn't show it, but she seemed a tiny bit twitchy whenever she heard her name being called out by unfamiliar voices. Shimako, Rosa Gigantea en bouton, was the victim of all the three schools' students' affection. She knew that if she was to attend St Spica, she could have a little bit of peace, or even St Miator. Unfortunately, she attended St Lulim and since the school was known for their carefree attitude, it was too carefree to the point that she had been bombarded with love letters when she returned to her room before lunch even started that day. And, of course, when she entered her classroom that morning she was almost cornered by her classmates asking her to be their date to the event. And now, even before she could enter the cafeteria to meet her friends, she had been approached from students from the other two schools confessing to her and asking her to be their date. Of course, during her time in Lilian, she did get a small amount of love letters and confessions but it was never this much. If she was Yoshino, she would have gone insane by now.

After politely decline the students and explained why she did, Shimako finally made her way towards the table that her friends were waiting for her and sat down with a soft, and clearly, tired sigh. The Roses had witnessed the whole scene when the younger dark blonde hair girl was outside the cafeteria. They all had knowing smiles upon their faces but the smiles quickly faded when they noticed the girl was sighing tiredly. Yoshino was about to make a move to make her friend feel a little better, but Yumi seemed to beat the girl into it.

"You are loved by so many people, Shimako-san. I feel a little jealous." Yumi said with a small giggle, hoping that what she said would cheer the other girl up.

Shimako just smiled at her pigtailed friend and shook her head gently. "You shouldn't be, Yumi-san. I believe that if Sachiko-sama isn't protecting you like a bee protecting its honey, everyone would be lining up to ask you to be their date."

At that comment, both Yumi and Sachiko blushed and the result got the table to giggle. What Shimako said was true. If it wasn't for Sachiko already _claiming_ her date without making it official, Yumi would be chased down by all the girls around the campus.

"You seem to be rejecting and breaking a lot of hearts today, Shimako-chan." Sei said with a hand placed on her petite soeur's shoulder. "Are you following my footsteps?"

Shimako had to giggle at that, especially when Youko had reached over and playfully slapped Sei's shoulder while chiding the older girl. "I am afraid I'm not following your _footsteps_, Onee-sama. It's just…" She paused, sighing with a light shake of her head. "None of them knows me, and I know nothing about them. In fact, I have not heard any of their names until today. It would be unfair for them if I have accepted to be their date, is it not?"

Sachiko smiled at the answer. She knew the feeling quite well. It was like when she had been asked to accept the Valentine's gift from the girls at Lilian, and she had rejected the gift because she didn't know any of them, nor did she have any reason to accept their gifts. "The dance is still far away, I'm sure that you will find a date until then."

Shimako turned and smiled kindly at the raven hair girl. "Thank you, Sachiko-sama." She said softly and even though she knew that she might find someone of interest to go with, but she'd doubt that it would be that soon. She hadn't paid any attention to anyone ever since she had entered the campus. She had always been hanging around the Roses, and if she wasn't she'd be hanging around the many clubs that Chikaru had created. She had to admit that she enjoyed all of the jobs that Chikaru had created. They were fun and exciting. One of her favorites would be the Cosplay Club. Sei, thanks to Chikaru's scary look, had been put into the most beautiful cowboy costume that Chikaru had made. To Sei, it would look like that she was exposing too much skin and that she looked like a pick-up girl with a fake gun. To Shimako, her Onee-sama looked absolutely stunning!

"Well, that goes back to Eriko!" Sei suddenly said as she whipped her head over to her friend. "Are you sure that you're not interested in dancing with me?"

The girl in question let out a puff of a fake annoyance before eyeing her friend. "And let your hands wander around my body like the true dirty old man that you are? I don't think so!"

While Youko only watched on with amusement dancing within her eyes, Yumi and Yoshino couldn't help but let out giggles between the two elder Roses. Rei and Sachiko only sat there in silence with a small sigh escaping their lips every now and then when Sei made a ridiculous remark and Eriko countered each of them with her own. Shimako only watched on with a serene smile while she was secretly giggling uncontrollably with Yumi and Yoshino from the inside. If only she could let herself be a little free like her two younger friends, then maybe she would be able to enjoy her high school years to the fullest.

"Hikari, are you sure?"

A voice quickly caught the attention of the Lilian Angel's ears. When she tore her eyes away from the comedy that was her two elder Roses, she saw a girl with the same color hair as hers, and another long ebony hair girl trailing behind the other. Her eyes were fixed on the dark hair girl, silently watching them as the two girls walked past her table.

"I…I…I don't think I can do it." The blonde, judging from her voice that it didn't belong to the one Shimako heard not a second ago, was called Hikari.

The dark hair girl quickly grabbed the shorter girl, turning the girl to face her straight in the eyes before asking in a pained voice. "Why? Everyone makes mistakes and I can assure you that I made the same mistake as you did when I was on that stage the first time. So please, reconsider your decision!"

'_Stage?'_ Shimako thought before she tuned out what the other two girls were talking about. They must have noticed that they were catching quite a bit of attention from the crowd, so they had quickly made an exit just discuss whatever they were discussing in private. Shimako had turned to her two friends that were attending St Spica, since she had noticed that those two girls were attending the same school as theirs. Yoshino and Rei were listening in the conversation as well. In fact, the Roses had stopped what they were doing and were listening to the conversation, or they were trying to be respectful so the other two Spica girls could have their conversation without loud noises.

"Yoshino-san, do you know what they are talking about?" Yumi was the first to ask.

Yoshino let out a sigh with a nod. "Yes, I do."

"Would you mind telling us?" Shimako asked softly and although she was curious about the story, she was more curious about who the dark hair girl was. The look on the girl's face was nothing but pure sadness and heartbreak when Shimako had laid her eyes on her. Somehow she had figured out that those emotions weren't because of what they were discussing, it was because of something else that she was sure she would be able to find out if she could get closer to the girl. _'Why do I want to get closer to her?'_ She quickly thought and when she saw Yoshino's lips begin to move, she dismissed the thought and went back to pay more attention to the group.

"Well, you all notice that Ohtori Amane wasn't at school for all of last week?" Yoshino asked and when the group nodded, she continued. "She just came back on Saturday. Well, her whole Horseback Riding team was back on Saturday. Because me and Rei-chan are the newest members and still need further training, we didn't go to help with the competition. Amane won the tournament for St Spica, and the Saintly Chorus gave her a song as gift." She paused and sighed. "Poor Hikari-san though, due to her nervousness she started to sing before the whole Saintly Chorus group could. So she ended up embarrassing herself in front of the whole audience! People started to whisper to one another because of the incident, and Amane had to stand up to silence everyone with a stern look."

Youko sighed and nodded her head. "Yes, now I can understand what they were talking about. I also can understand why Hikari-chan wants to quit."

"The sad thing is…" Yoshino began. "She admires Amane."

"Like all the other St Spica girls?" Yumi asked.

Rei shook her head. "I notice that she is unlike the other girls from St Spica. While they are cheering at Amane-san from behind the fences when Amane-san practices, I always see her standing behind a tree and watch Amane-san from afar. I can only guess that her admiration has turned into adoration…"

"And love." Yoshino finished her cousin's sentence. "Amane is rather difficult to approach because of all the girls that are surrounding her." She then frowned as she turned her eyes towards her cousin as they began to narrow slightly. "Then again, it is _very difficult_ for me to approach my own _cousin _and _Onee-sama_ when she is being surrounded by her _admirers_!"

Rei had to lower her head to hide the blush from her younger cousin. It certainly wasn't her fault that she had rather a huge fan base like Amane's. Besides, she was nice to everyone that approached her and, since she was friendly, it was so easy for anyone to approach her.

"Oh but Yoshino-chan, you're somewhat scary so I'm sure when they notice you they'd scatter out of the way, right?" Eriko teased with an amused smirk on her face. The younger girl's left eye started to twitch in annoyance. But because she didn't want to lose to her grande soeur, she had to make a witty comeback.

"And yet, I'm not too scary for you, Rosa Foetida."

The older Yellow Rose chuckled before reaching over and patted Yoshino's hand in a mock sympathy. "It will take a lot more than one Yoshino to scare me away."

And while another comedy had started out, catching the Roses' attention as one or two of them would join in the fun, Shimako couldn't help but think about the long ebony hair girl that she had seen. And, since she had spoken to Amane and had made a friend on that night, she was sure to go to the older girl to speak to her about this. She wanted to help out that Hikari girl. Then again, the reason behind it being her wanting to see somewhat of a smile from that ebony hair girl. If Hikari would reconsider her decision of quitting the Saintly Chorus, she was sure that Hikari's friend and, the subject of her interest, would be happy as well.

'_Well, at least it's not that hard for me to grab Amane-sempai out for a small talk.'_ Shimako thought with a smile. And she was right about that. She had gained enough respect from all the girls from the campus not only because of her title, but also because of her angelic beauty and serene aura that she was giving off. Also, her friendly personality and the contagious smile that the girls always wanted to see when she was around. So grabbing the star and Prince of St Spica was of no trouble for the Angel of Lilian at all.

* * *

_A/N_

Yaya x Shimako. What do you guys think? :o Unless you want Hikari x Shimako then that would be awkward..


	20. Chapter 20

**Twenty**

For the next two days Amane had been quite busy with her practicing and trying her best to not be bothered by the screaming girls that were her fans. It wasn't the fact that Amane was hard to approach. It was the fact that the screaming fan girls had made it quite difficult for Amane to be approached. Fortunately, that didn't kill her determination to help someone out that she didn't even know. She had told herself that this had nothing to do with the ebony hair girl, but the more that she wanted to talk to Amane about cheering up the Hikari girl, the more she wanted to see a smile upon the ebony hair girl's face. She also had told herself that she was chasing after a lost cause. Well, it wouldn't be a lost cause if she hadn't even started yet! So when it came to day three, which was Thursday, the Angel of Lillian couldn't wait anymore. She had noticed the ebony girl walking with her head down low and her eyes full of sadness. It upset her to see the girl in that way, and so she had promised herself that she would talk to Amane today. So when lunch came around, she had quickly finished up her lunch and excused herself to make her way over to the Horseback Riding training ground. She could hear the screaming of the fan girls as she neared the training ground. When she saw a flash of Amane on her white horse, she smiled softly to herself as she went around the training fences to enter the barn.

Shimako could feel that she was being watched from the girls that were cheering on at Amane. She knew that it was rare to see a St Lulim wandering around the St Spica Horseback Riding training ground, but the dark blonde hair girl didn't mind it one bit. So when she had set her foot on inside the barn, she noticed that there were a few members that were there working on their horses, and they had stopped when they saw her entering the barn. She didn't pay any mind to them, not when she was there for a purpose. She walked straight to where Amane was getting her white horse into a trot, and waited for her just outside the barn.

Amane turned the horse around when she saw Shimako waiting for her. She had noticed the Rosa Gigantea en bouton walking toward the barn and entering it. She had to tear her eyes from Hikari, the girl that she had noticed for quite some time now, just to be polite to the girl that was waiting for her. After the incident she had wanted to talk to Hikari but since she never had a quiet time alone to approach the girl, there was next to zero percent for her to make her move. Not to mention that she didn't even know the girl's name as well. She was glad that she could take just a little break from the girl that was haunting her mind. So when she came to a stop before Shimako, she smiled down gently at the younger girl and nodded her head to acknowledge the girl's presence.

"Good day, Shimako-san." She spoke softly and from the outsider's view, it would look like that the two were gazing at each other lovingly. Well, whispers had already started up about the two. The girls were more than interested to know if Shimako was there to ask Amane to be her date for the dance. Even though the girls adored and admired Shimako, they felt jealous that the girl even had the courage to do so. They didn't know that Shimako was there for a very different reason than what they had thought.

"Good day, Amane-sempai. I hope that I'm not interrupting you with your practices." Shimako said politely as she looked up at the taller girl on the horse.

Amane shook her head gently before slipping herself off of her white horse. She then turned and smiled softly at the girl in front of her before speaking softly. "No, I am glad that you did." When she noticed the determination in Shimako's dark grey eyes, she became a little more serious. "Would you mind talking in private, Shimako-san?"

Shimako smiled knowingly and nodded. "Yes, if that is not too much of a trouble for you, Amane-sempai."

Amane smiled and asked her to wait so she could get her horse into his tall. Once she emerged from the barn, the two of them started to head toward the lockers that only the Horseback Riding members could use. So when the two had started to head towards that direction, Hikari was watching them with a pained look while her hand was clutching against her chest as if trying to comfort it in a way. She had thought she could go up to the star of St Spica and talk to the taller girl, but because of the incident last Saturday, she didn't want the girl to even know her name. She was embarrassed enough as it was. All she ever wanted to do was to sing well for Ohtori Amane and yet, she embarrassed herself in front of her love interest. So once the other two girls had gone out of sight, she let a silent tear fell from her eyes before turning around and left.

Shimako and Amane reached their destination; Amane had asked Shimako to wait for her so she could go clean up before they could begin that talk. Shimako had assured the older girl that she didn't mind the wait, and it turned out she didn't need to wait for that long. So when Amane emerged from the shower room, Shimako had patiently waited for the older girl to give the signal so she could start on the conversation.

"So, what do you want to talk about with me, Shimako-san?" The taller girl asked as she pulled the towel off of her wet hair. She opened up her locker to get out her St Spica uniform while Shimako turned to give the girl a little privacy.

"It is about a particular girl from the Saintly Chorus." Shimako stated and hoped that Amane would know who the girl was without her having to say the name. Then again, she had already knew that the older girl wouldn't.

"Hmm, which girl?" Amane asked in curiosity and concerned. In her head, she had begun to see that nervous blonde girl that was on stage on Saturday.

Shimako sighed and turned herself around when she knew that Amane had finished changing into her uniform. "The girl that seems to want to quit because of the little incident that happened on stage on Saturday."

Amane's eyes widened in recognition and she looked away, her dark ruby eyes were filled with guilt and sadness. Guilt, because it was her fault that the girl wanted to quit. Sadness, because she wanted to hear the girl's voice again. No, she wanted to see the smile upon the girl's face. She hadn't seen one smile from her, and she had wondered if the younger girl had always been like that. "I see…" She quietly murmured.

Shimako looked on at Amane, feeling guilty that she had brought this up to her, and yet she felt like she must. By Amane's reaction at the moment, she could tell that the older girl had grown some kind of feelings for this Hikari girl. So it wasn't at all a lose-lose situation. She could still succeed, if she could press on just a little.

"Amane-sempai." She said softly and when Amane looked over at her, she offered a smile in comfort before continuing. "If I have to guess, the reason that she wants to quit is because she thinks she has fail in deliver something that she has worked so hard for the person that she adores, and it didn't work out and in the end she had embarrassed herself in front of that person. I think that if _that person_ can explain to her that it is not her fault and she should not give up, I believe that she would be very happy. Don't you agree, Amane-sempai?" She asked with that serene smile and the innocent look in her eyes.

After hearing Shimako's words, Amane couldn't help but smile at the younger girl. Even though Shimako didn't straightforwardly name the younger girl that had been haunting her mind, she had appreciated the darker blonde to be discreet about it also. So when Shimako had given her an advice that she needed to hear, she had to control her smile so she wasn't actually beaming down at her. "Thank you, Shimako-san. I owe you one."

Shimako gave a light shake of her head in respond. "You don't owe me anything, Amane-sempai. As long as the students around the campus are happy, then that is all that I want to see."

Amane nodded her head but not until she had reached over and placed a gentle hand on Shimako's cheek, that she couldn't help but let her thumb ran across the soft skin of Shimako's cheek. "There is so much that you can give," Amane began. "Yet, you don't expect to receive anything back in return. I am both confused and amazed that such a person would exist."

Shimako blushed not only at the praise, but at the soft touch that Amane was giving her. However, because she had been around Sei for quite a while, she took a step back away from Amane's hand and bowed her head. "I have everything that I need or want in my life, Amane-sempai, I do not need for anything more." Although she knew that it was a lie, but she did hope that the tone in her voice at least convinced Amane that she was telling the truth.

Unfortunately for Shimako, Amane noticed the lie but didn't comment on it. So instead of revealing that Shimako was lying, the older girl only smiled and brushed a strand of hair away from her ruby eyes. "Lunch is almost over, would you like me to walk you back to St Lulim?"

Shimako smiled in appreciation but shook her head at the offer. "It is quite alright, Amane-sempai. I wouldn't want you to be late to class. I can make my own way there, thank you for your concern."

Amane nodded but still offered Shimako to walk her half way to St Lulim, and since she didn't want to refuse Amane's kindness for the second time, Shimako accepted. When the two girls parted, Sei had silently joined up with her petite soeur not a moment after Amane had departed from her. The older White Rose shot the younger rose a look before the corner of her lips curled up into a smirk.

"Ohtori Amane huh?" Sei asked suggestively as she gave her petite soeur a little nudge.

Shimako blushed at the misunderstanding and quickly shook her head. "No, Onee-sama. Amane-sempai is just a friend."

"Mmm, I do wonder how you get the star of St Spica to be your friend." Sei mused before she quickly dismissed what she was saying. "I guess with you, everything is possible."

Shimako gave out a low chuckle before she turned her head to look up at the sky. "Not everything is possible, Onee-sama. You just have to always try your best."

Sei glanced over at her, wanting to know what was going on in her petite soeur's head. She then quickly set her eyes back to the path ahead of them, however, knowing that Shimako would tell her if the girl was ready to.

"So, have you found a date for the event yet?" Sei said, quickly changing the subject.

Shimako sighed and shook her head, knowing that her Onee-sama wouldn't stop asking the question until she would be able to find a date herself. "Onee-sama…" She let out a murmur that amused the current Rosa Gigantea that the older girl had to chuckle.

'_It is not quite bad to turn up at such event alone. Besides, it is not all for the girls.'_ Shimako thought as she began to think about the boys that would be there. And since she couldn't imagine what the boys would be like, and how their attitudes toward the girls would also be like, she given up trying to imagine they would be polite and kind. She had only interacted with her father and the male clients that had come to her family's temple. They were all grown men, so she couldn't imagine what teenage boys would act like. _'Maria-sama, please take good care of me during the event.'_

* * *

_A/N_

__I can tell that there will be rumors about Amane and Shimako now! Haha! Oh these popular Roses with popular St Spica/St Miator or St Lulim people. Next you'd probably see Shizuma and Sachiko bonding! Haha, in my dreams...I think they'd rather fight with each other than make nice.


	21. Chapter 21

**Twenty One**

Words that Shimako and Amane could possibly be attending the dancing event together were quickly spread throughout the Strawberry Dorm. No matter how many time that Amane had dismissed the rumors, they came at her at full force whenever she happened to cross path with Shimako. The Angel of Lillian had offered an empathic smile in which the Spica Star had dismissed it with a warm smile. The little exchange didn't go unnoticed from the passerby and, of course, the rumors only increased tenfold. Shimako had politely declined every question that had been shot at her to confirm that they were true. Amane was the only one that had gotten off a little bit easier than Shimako. The blue hair girl had spent most of her free time practicing on the horse track training ground but couldn't focus on it. It had gone on until Friday that she had started to grow irritate. That was why she had woken up early on a Saturday morning – way too early for her taste – to practice. What happened on that eventful Saturday morning was something that she would never forget. Amane had met up with the Lillian Angel on a Sunday afternoon, and Shimako hadn't seen a smile that bright on the older girl's face ever since she had met her.

"Amane-sempai, you look _extremely_ happy today." Shimako commented as the both of them were sitting in the same table and eating lunch together. Amane had politely asked Shimako to join her when the older girl had approached the Roses' table earlier. She was greeted with warm smiles from all the Roses and a nod from Shimako to confirm that she would.

Amane looked up from her food to Shimako and smiled once more. "I've never felt so alive ever since I've came here, Shimako."

"Ah," Shimako smiled in understanding as she nodded. "May I take a guess that you have talked to that _girl_ from the Saintly Chorus?" A small glint of redness adorned the older girl's cheeks as she nodded. Shimako could only smile. "I take it that it went well?" Another nod from the other girl confirmed her question. "I am happy for you, Amane-sempai."

The other girl smiled in thanks. "What about you, Shimako? These rumors aren't giving you any trouble, aren't they?"

Shimako smiled and shook her head. "Not at all, although I have to say that they won't believe a word I said when I told them that we are just friends."

Amane sighed. "I'm sorry to have troubled you, Shimako."

Before Shimako could reply, Sei had appeared before the two girls and smiled down at Amane. "You know, Amane-san, maybe you should just take my petite soeur to the dance."

Amane was startled by the appearance of Rosa Gigantea that she had looked up at the senior with surprise. The surprise didn't last long because she just smiled and turned to look at Shimako with an apologetic look. "My apologies, Shimako, but I have a person in mind that I would like to take to the dance with."

Shimako let out a blushed while shaking her head. "No, it should be my apologies, Amane-sempai. I didn't know that Onee-sama would actually show up and suggest such…a thing." She then shot Sei a look that the senior had to chuckle nervously under the younger girl's disapproving stare.

Amane watched the two of them having a staring contest for at least ten seconds before deciding to clear her throat to catch the two soeurs' attention. "So, who do you have in mind for your partner, Shimako?"

Shimako blinked and before she answered, she saw the same girl with long ebony hair walking passed them. Her dark grey eyes followed the girl until she was out of sight before turning to look at the two older girls before her. The knowing smiles that both of them had on their faces caused her to look down at her half eaten sandwich to hide the blush that was starting to form on her cheeks.

"I see, I see," Sei said with a delighted chuckle. "What's her name?"

Shimako shook her head. "I do not know." And before Sei could even march off towards the girl with long ebony hair, Shimako had quickly shot out her hand and grabbed the other girl's shirt to stop her from moving. "I would appreciate it if I could _at least_ learn her name by my own, Onee-sama."

**-x-**

She was content that her best friend and roommate had decided to go back to the choir practice. The fourth St Spica grader, Nanto Yaya, had seen it all on that Saturday morning. She had witnessed Ohtori Amane taking her friend – and secret crush – back to the dormitory. She knew that whatever had happened between them that morning would turn out to be good, and it did. Hikari had come straight into the room and told her that she would be going back to the choir practice. Yaya was happy at the news, but it pained her to know that her feelings would never, ever, be returned. Yet, she still hoped that one day Hikari would know her feelings, and perhaps return those said feelings as well. Even though that hope was not going to get her anywhere, it was enough to keep her sane.

Yaya was just about to finish her lunch when she noticed Amane walking towards the Roses' table. Her curiosity spike as her dark hazel eyes followed the taller girl's movement. When she noticed that Amane had asked the younger blonde of the group to join her for lunch, she had almost destroyed the sandwich that she was holding in her hand. Not only that Amane was giving hope to her best friend, she was even _toying_ with her! Such action was not acceptable in her eyes but she had no proof that Amane would do such a thing. The girl was, in fact, popular and very well respected just like the Etoile. However, just because Amane was popular and well respected, it didn't mean anything for Yaya if the said girl was to hurt her best friend. So she decided to stay a little while longer to observe the two girls not too far from her. If she could tune out everyone and only focus on the two, she'd be able to hear the conversation.

When Yaya had strained her ears to listen to what Amane and Shimako were talking about, she began to relax. Apparently, the young blonde knew about Hikari. She wondered how she knew, but judging from what she had heard it appeared that the blonde had helped her friend out. Well, that was all she needed to hear because she was sure that she didn't want to hear who Amane was taking to the dance. So she had stood up from her table and started to casually exit the cafeteria. She had heard Amane asking the younger White Rose of who she was taking to the dance with, and it was then that she heard silence from the girl and felt six pair of eyes on her. She shrugged the feeling off and left the cafeteria to go back to the dorm. Hikari was waiting for her there, and of course the annoying first year student, Okuwaka Tsubomi. She sighed and shook her head. Dealing with that energetic and annoying brat was enough to give her a huge headache.

Once Yaya returned to her room, the first thing that she noticed was Hikari practicing her vocal while Tsubomi was standing nearby to right a few errors that the girl had made. She smiled at the both of them in acknowledgement and thought that she could get away with joining in the practice, Tsubomi had jumped on her and _demanded_ her to get out the practice book. After five minutes, she had grown bored of it and decided to take a break. And since she was taking a break, she had grabbed Hikari to join her. While Tsubomi told them that she would join them later, Yaya had taken up that chance to pull the adorable blonde out and made a quick dash down the hallway and towards the stairs. Once they were almost there, she slowed her pace into a walk and was quite happy to be by Hikari's side. When she noticed two St Miator's students ascending the stairs, she smiled at them and gave them a respectful bow. It was then that she heard the conversation between the two that caught her interest. So she turned to them and sighed.

"Ahh, it's so nice that St Miator gets to have nice and adorable room temp." She said rather disappointedly. Hikari had to giggle at her comment.

"Oh, wouldn't it be easier if the two of you transfer to St Miator?" Nagisa asked as if it was easy to do so. And because of that, it caused the two St Spica girls to giggle at her question.

"I guess you don't know that it is not quite easy to do so, ne?" Yaya said with a playful wink that caused Nagisa to blush in embarrassment of her question. "I take it that you're that new transfer student Aoi Nagisa?"

Nagisa nodded and smiled at her while Tamao gave the ebony hair girl with a smile of her own. "You seem to know quite a lot about St Miator, Nanto Yaya-san. I believe that Konohana Hikari-san was transferred to St Spica last year as well."

Yaya chuckled and nodded. "You know your stuff quite well in regard to St Spica, Suzumi Tamao-san."

Both Nagisa and Hikari only watched on in confusion as their two best friends smiled at each other like they were having some kind of competition. However, it didn't last long when Nagisa gave out a disappointed sigh along with, "It's such a shame that I wouldn't be able to see Tamao-chan in an apron."

Tamao, whom had a secret crush on her, giggled as to hide her blush before she responded. "I doubt I would look cute in an apron, Nagisa-chan. However, it _is a shame_ that I wouldn't be able to see you in an apron, Nagisa-chan. You would look adorable in it!"

While Nagisa blushed under her best friend's praise, Yaya turned to look at her own best friend and grinned. "Although Nagisa-chan might look cute in an apron, I would doubt that she could compete with Hikari-chan."

Nagisa and Hikari exchanged a look that very much said _'We're their dolls'_.

"All joking aside," Tamao started as she softly cleared her throat. "I believe that St Spica provides the fourth grader with their first year helpers as well. So, you don't have to envy us students from St Miator, Yaya-chan."

Yaya heaved out a long sigh and folded her arms across her chest. If only that the blue hair girl knew exactly what she was talking about. However, it didn't hurt to tell her newfound friendship with the other two girls about the little monster that was her first year helper. "You don't know, Tamao-chan, but our first year is quite a bit of a…how do you put it nice lywithout outrightly insulting her?"

Hikari giggled quietly behind her hand. "Yaya-chan, Tsubomi isn't that bad."

Yaya quickly turned to her friend, her eyes widened a little as if the other girl had just told a bad joke. "Not _that bad_? Hikari, she works us to the bones and we're her seniors!"

"That's because you're too lazy, Yaya-sempai!" A loud voice announced itself from atop the stairs as both Yaya and Hikari flinched slightly. They knew the owner of that voice. They also knew that the owner had heard their conversation. And although Hikari was a tad bit embarrassed and a little guilty because of it, Yaya wasn't. In fact, the dark hazel eyes girl didn't seem like she was guilty of it at all. Not only that, Yaya had muttered under her breath, "Speaking of the devil," after she had been called out.

"So, you're Yaya-chan and Hikari-chan's room temp?" Nagisa asked in a friendly tone as she looked up at the younger girl. The said girl just huffed and pointed an accused finger at the ebony hair girl with a little frown upon her forehead.

"Room temp? No, I am not their room temp. If anything, I am only in their presence to stop them from lacking in the choir practice!" The pink girl declared before she cleared her throat. "If you two are wondering about who I am, my name is Okuwaka Tsubomi, first year student of St Spica and also a member of the Saintly Chorus in which both Yaya-sempai and Hikari-sempai are in."

Yaya heaved out another sigh and placed a hand upon her head while shaking it lightly. "Such a bother."

Unfortunately, that didn't go unnoticed by the pink hair girl. "Yaya-sempai! As one of the most talented in the Saintly Chorus' members, everyone is expecting you to perform flawlessly!"

Hikari sighed and shook her head as she glanced over at her friend. "If only she has some more dedication in her role."

Feeling like she had been outnumbered by the two girls, Yaya quickly turned to her two new friends and silently pleading them with her eyes for help. Nagisa immediately saw it as a chance to get to know her two new friends better, not because she had any idea how to help Yaya out. So with a cheerful smile and a clap of her hands, she turned to both the Spica girls and said in a cheerful voice that matched her smile. "Oh! Why don't the three of you come to our room! Tamao-chan has received her family red tea this morning and we were on our way back to enjoy it!"

Yaya smiled in relief and appreciation at the red head before she nodded. "Thank you, Nagisa-chan."

"Thank you, Nagisa-chan." Hikari murmured softly as she smiled at the other girl. Tsubomi just stood there with a defeated look since the subject had been changed so quickly that she didn't have the chance to even prepare for it. So she had to silently follow the seniors to the two Miator's girls room and tried her best to not be so loud in the presence of the four seniors.

When Nagisa was about to open the door to the room, she heard a crash from within. The five girls were wondering what was happening, so when Nagisa opened the door and let the girls inside, the room was a mess. Books were all over the place and the chairs seemed to have fallen. While the other four girls were inspecting the unexpected messy room, Nagisa was the first to saw the movement from an unknown presence that was hidden under the duvet of the bed. Since Nagisa was so easily scared, and just the movement from the duvet had her jumped straight into a conclusion that it was a ghost, the red head screamed at the top of her lungs and dashed out of the room so fast that the other girls couldn't figure out what had just happened. When they turned to the moving object, it appeared that there was a petite dark hair girl from under it. The girl was wearing a St Miator uniform underneath the white apron that she was wearing. It only further indicated that the girl was Tamao and Nagisa's room temp that didn't turn up last night. However, the sound of another crash caught the girls' attention as they turned their heads towards the open door. They could only guess that their friend had run into something, or someone, and had fallen on her bottom at the result.

**-x-**

Yoshino and Yumi were walking back to their rooms together when they saw their red head friend dashing passed them. They both exchanged looks of concern before they turned to watch the girl's retreating form. Then their eyes had widened when they noticed that their friend was running straight to Sister Hamasaka, the Head Sister of the Strawberry Dorm and the scariest Sister that they had ever met. So when the red head had collided with Sister Hamasaka, they could only pray for their friend to receive minimum punishment such as a lecture. They both watched as Sister Hamasaka starting to recover from her fall, while their friend's form went rigid. When the Head Sister had recovered, she immediately stood up as the red head hurriedly stood with her. She looked down at the red head with a stern stare before folding her arms. The two watched as Sister Hamasaka turned and started to walk towards her office with their friend following behind her. The red head had her head casted down in shame and they could tell that the girl was quite scared of what might happen in the office.

"Should we…help her?" Yumi asked, unsure of what to do as they continued to watch their friend.

"Yes but how exactly are we going to do that?" Yoshino replied as she sighed.

Yumi pondered for a little while before a light bulb going off above her head. She smiled happily as she quickly turned to her friend. "I know who can help Nagisa-san! Rokujou-sama!"

"You're right, Yumi-san! Rokujou-sama may be able to rescue Nagisa-san from her misery!" Yoshino said in a matter-of-fact voice that Yumi had to let out a nervous chuckle.

"You're exaggerating her situation a little too far, Yoshino-san."

"No one will know, Yumi-san." Yoshino responded with a chuckle of her own. "Let's go find Rokujou-sama. I don't think that Nagisa-san would be able to last long in Sister Hamasaka's office."

Yumi nodded and the two began to search for the St Miator's Student Council President. It wasn't long until they found Rokujou Miyuki quietly chatting with the Etoile. When they approached her, they had told the Miator's Student Council President what had happened and hoped that the older girl would help their friend out. While the two exchange students were telling the story, Shizuma had listened with an amused twinkle in her eyes. Although she wanted to go and help her dear Nagisa out, it wasn't quite her job to do so when it was Miyuki's job. So after the story had been told and the pleading of the two girls had been acknowledged, Miyuki had excused herself to go to the Head Sister's office to rescue Nagisa.

"You two are quite close to Nagisa." Shizuma said with a soft smile. "Thank you for looking out for her."

Yumi and Yoshino just smiled and nodded. "It is what a friend is for." Yoshino said proudly.

"We will leave you be and see if Nagisa-san is alright, Etoile-sama. Have a good day." Yumi said politely as she bowed her head to the taller girl. Yoshino mimicked her friend's action before both girls turned and walked towards direction of the Head Sister's office.

**-x-**

"I'm sorry for inconveniencing you again, Rokujou-sama." Nagisa said as she bowed her head in shame. Miyuki smiled at her as she placed a hand upon the girl's shoulder.

"It's my job to ensure that the Miator students are happy and out of trouble. Just be careful next time, Nagisa-chan. Also, remember to not run in the hallway. It is one of the Strawberry Dorm's rules."

"Yes! Rokujou-sama!" Nagisa responded while her head was still in a bowing position.

"You should thank Shimazu and Fukuzawa-san. They came to me and asked me to help you." Miyuki said as she turned and smiled at the other two younger girls. "I have a bit of paperwork to do, please excuse me."

The three younger girls let out a "Have a good day" after Miyuki had made her way down the hallway. Nagisa straightened herself up and let out a quiet sigh before she turned to look at the other two girls. She turned to her friends and flashed a smile in gratitude. "Thank you, Yoshino-san and Yumi-san! You two really did save me!"

The other two girls let out a small giggle as they waved a hand in the air as if to say it was no problem at all. "We look out for our friends, Nagisa-san, so there's no need to thank us." Yoshino said sweetly as Yumi nodded.

"Let us walk you back to your room, Nagisa-san." Yumi said when really her true intention was to spend a little bit more time with Nagisa. They hadn't spent a lot of time together lately and the pigtailed girl missed her red head friend quite a lot. Besides, Yumi wasn't in Nagisa's class so it only made it a tad harder for her to socialize with the girl.

Nagisa nodded and smiled brightly. "Thank you, Yoshino-san, Yumi-san."

The walk back to Nagisa's room was filled with conversation about the reason behind her freaking out and running in the hallway to sweets. Upon arriving at Nagisa's room, the red head wasn't ready to let her two friends go just yet. So she had grabbed the two girls' hands and pulled them into the room after opening the door. She was surprised that Tamao, Yaya, Hikari and Tsubomi were sitting on either side of the two beds waiting for her. Plus, there was another girl too that she didn't quite recognize, other than that she had seen her somewhere before. Yaya and Hikari looked up and over Nagisa's shoulders to where Yoshino and Yumi stood and smiled gently at them, which they received back in return.

"Oh, the room is clean." Was Nagisa's first statement as she laid her eyes around the room.

Yaya chuckled before tossing her ebony hair over her shoulder with a quick movement of her hand. "Of course! It was a mess when we arrived and since you got so spooked up and ran away, we didn't quite know what to do other than helping you clean the room and wait for you to come back."

"And we also heard that you got into trouble with Sister Hamasaka." Tsubomi said with a shake of her head. "You should know better than running around the hallway, Nagisa-sempai."

Nagisa chuckled nervously before sighing. That was when she noticed the other girl came up to her with tears in her eyes. The sight hurt her and she wanted to assure the girl that everything was alright, but before she could the dark hair girl had let out a small cry with tears had starting to fall from her eyes. "I-I'm s-so sorry, N-Nagisa-o-oneesama! I-If it wasn't f-for me, then y-you wouldn't g-get i-into trouble!"

Nagisa watched the tears fall from the younger girl's eyes with sadness before she walked up to her and pulled the younger girl into a warm embrace. "It's okay. There's no harm done, umm…"

The younger girl instantly pulled out from the warm embrace, her cheeks flushed and her tears seemed to have stopped a little when she quickly bowed her head. "Oh…Um..My name is Chiyo." The girl fidgeted a little as she looked down. "Tsukidate Chiyo."

Nagisa only smiled as she pulled out her handkerchief and began to wipe the tears from the younger girl's face. "Well, Chiyo-chan, there is no harm done and I am quite happy to meet you."

"It's a shame that we didn't get to taste Tamao-chan's red tea." Yaya sighed in disappointment.

"Ah, indeed. It is a shame." Tamao added as she looked over to where she kept her tea.

"Oh!" Nagisa suddenly exclaimed that got everyone in the room to look at her in curiosity. "We can have a midnight tea party!"

"Midnight tea party?" Yaya repeated with a thoughtful look. Then she smiled and nodded. "That would be fun!"

Nagisa beamed when Tamao smiled at her in approval. The red head then turned to her two other friends with hope in her excited crimson eyes. "Yoshino-san, Yumi-san, would you join us?"

Both said girls looked at each other as if to have a silent conversation with their eyes, before they turned and smiled softly at their friend. "Of course! Although, would that be against the rule?" Yumi said worriedly.

Yaya giggled and nodded. "It is, but there's no fun in life if we don't take the risk once in a while right?"

Yoshino, seeming to have found someone that had the same motive as her in live, nodded enthusiastically. "Of course! You are right!"

Yumi sighed and shook her head. "Yoshino-san is all pumped up now…"

"Would you invite Shimako-san for us, Yumi-san?" Tamao asked softly.

Yumi nodded in confirmation before she turned to both Yaya and Hikari. Since they hadn't formally introduced themselves yet, she took that as an opportunity to do so. "I believe that we haven't met until now, and I'm very sure that you have heard of us as well. My name is Fukuzawa Yumi, it's nice to meet you two."

Yoshino nodded and smiled gently at the two girls that went to the same academy as her. "My name is Shimazu Yoshino, it's nice to meet you two."

"I'm Nanto Yaya, it's a pleasure to meet both of you." Yaya said before she turned and chuckled at Yoshino. "We go to the same school and are in the same class, I'm surprise that you haven't learned my name, Yoshino-san."

Yoshino blushed as she scratched the side of her face nervously. "Well, when all I am focusing on is my studies, I guess I don't really pay much attention to the people around me unless there is…something exciting happening."

Hikari giggled before she introduced herself. "I'm Konohana Hikari, it is a pleasure to meet the two of you."

Yumi's lips formed into an 'O' shape as she gazed at Hikari. The girl resembled Shimako, though not so much. She could tell that the girl was also shy judging by her body language. Unfortunately, she couldn't stop what was going to escape her mouth. "You look so much like Shimako-san, Hikari-san!"

The blonde blinked before she blushed, knowing full well who she was being compared to. "Umm…No, I don't…think so. Toudou-san looks is more serene and angelic. My appearance just…normal..."

Yoshino let out a small huff as she waved her hand before her to dismiss what Hikari just said. "Non-sense! Although I agreed to what you said about Shimako-san, but you look like the other version of Shimako-san! While Shimako-san appearance is angelic, your appearance is innocence! If you have to ask me, I would say that the two of you look like sisters!" Hikari blushed even harder which caused the two Lillian students to giggle.

"Anyway, we will be going back to our rooms now. We will see you at midnight." Yoshino said with a playful wink towards the group as they nodded their head in confirmation.

"I'll be sure to bring Shimako-san along. I'm sure she would enjoy this gathering."

The two Lillian girls then left to return to their respectful rooms while anticipating on the midnight tea party that would to happen later that day. They also prayed to Saint Maria to not let them get caught, even though the thrill of getting caught would only increase their excitement.


	22. Chapter 22

**Twenty Two**

"Midnight tea party?" Shimako asked from her desk.

Yumi had returned to the room and had found her roommate sitting there with a worried expression. Even though the blonde didn't express it with her words, she sure did express her concern for her friend with her serene face. Yumi had felt a little guilty for taking longer to return to the room than usual, but she knew that after explaining things to her roommate, the girl would understand. Yumi's hope for the other girl to understand wasn't unnecessary, not when Shimako had listened to her reason with pure curiosity and concern that she had dismissed the worry that she had before Yumi had returned. The dark hair blonde had concluded that there was nothing to be worrying about after Yumi had explained to her. However, when Yumi had asked her to come to the midnight tea party with the other girls, she couldn't help but be concerned once more.

"Isn't it against the rules?" Shimako asked again, this time in worried.

"Well," Yumi started as her resolve began to falter. _'If only Yoshino was here…'_ she thought as she looked over at Shimako. How could she persuade Shimako when the girl was sitting there with the uttermost serene look on her face? She couldn't even imagine Shimako getting into any kind of trouble, and yet placing the girl's innocence on the line was something that she couldn't do. However, it was too late for her to decline the request, and she didn't want Yoshino to have to go alone. Plus, she didn't want Shimako to stay in her room alone while worrying about her as well. "Umm…yes, but…well…you see…" Yumi fidgeted with her fingers as she tried her best to muster out a good explanation to why they were having a midnight tea party. She knew that the reason for the midnight tea party was because her friends wanted to taste Tamao's red tea, and if she told Shimako that reason Yumi wasn't sure that the blonde would agree.

Shimako watched on as Yumi fidgeted and seemed to struggle for words. After a short moment of Yumi still struggling to find words, she let out a warm smile and stood up. "Yumi-san." She softly said to gain the other girl's attention. When she had Yumi's attention, she continued to let that smile spread. "If you really want me to go, then I will."

"Eh?" Yumi exclaimed in surprise. When she calmed down she smiled brightly but soon frowned. "You're not going to ask why we are having such a tea party that would get us into trouble if Sister Hamasaka found out?"

"Well, I am a little curious about why you are planning such a tea party at midnight, and I am worried that we might get caught but," Shimako paused and smiled a small smile at Yumi. "It is quite a thrill, don't you think?"

"Eh?" Yumi exclaimed once again in surprise. She didn't think that Shimako would say such things. If anything, Shimako would say the complete opposite and would refuse to come.

The blonde giggled softly at her friend's expression, she could clearly read the other girl's face without much effort. Then again, Yumi's expressions were quite easy to read from the very beginning. Shimako turned to look at the clock and sighed, it was quite a long way until the midnight tea party. She didn't know who would be coming other than Yumi, Yoshino and herself. However, she was looking forward to this small event. The thrill that she was getting from it was quite…something. She had never done anything that would go against the rules of any kind, that was more of her Onee-sama's job than hers.

"It's almost time for dinner, Yumi-san." Shimako stated as she turned towards the door. "Come on, we don't want them to wait for us, right?"

Yumi smiled and nodded enthusiastically. "Right!"

**-x-**

The midnight tea party was at eighty percent until completion. They were only missing the two first years and while they were waiting, the other two Spica girls couldn't help but stared wide-eyed at Shimako. They had seen Shimako around the campus, but that was only from afar. To actually come face to face with the Angel of Lillian wasn't something they were expecting to, especially at midnight either. Not to mention, they shared the same thought that both Yumi and Nagisa were thinking. They didn't think that Shimako would actually join them in breaking one of the rules of Strawbery Dorm. Not to say, joining them to take the punishment as well if they were to be caught. Unfortunately, their stares were making the dark blonde girl a little nervous, especially when both of them had thought highly of her.

"So you're Toudou Shimako-san!" Yaya quietly exclaimed as her dark hazel eyes looked over at the said girl.

Shimako sighed inwardly before turning to look at the long ebony girl, the girl that she had been having trouble keeping off of her mind. She smiled softly at Yaya and nodded her head in confirmation. "It's a pleasure to have met you..." She let her sentence hung while looking at the other girl with expectation that she would finish it for her.

"Yaya! Nanto Yaya!" Yaya replied with a smile of her own. Then she turned and motioned a hand at her roommate before introducing her. "This is my roommate, Konohana Hikari."

Hikari blushed under Shimako's gaze before she bowed her head in a greeting. "H-Hello!" When she looked up, her blush seemed to deepen in shade when Shimako was still looking at her with that serene smile. "Um…Amane-sempai had told me of your concern for me. T-Thank you!"

Yaya blinked in surprised. She hadn't heard about this before. In fact, Hikari didn't even mention it when she came back to the room after Amane dropped her off that day. The only think Hikari had talked about when she got back was how Amane wanted to hear her sing again. Yet, she didn't mention anything about Shimako's concern for her at all. She felt something then. It might have been jealousy, or it might have been something that she didn't quite know yet. However, right now she was dead set on the little of jealousy that she was feeling. Unfortunately, she didn't know who to direct that jealousy to; Hikari or Shimako? If she was to direct that feeling toward Shimako, then that would be that not only she had Amane as her competition, she also had Shimako as her competition to win Hikari's heart. But, if she was to direct it towards Hikari, then would that mean that she wanted Shimako to be concerned about her and not her best friend? Such troubled thoughts left her sighing as she looked down at her cup of tea. What she didn't know was the sigh that had escaped her lips had caught Shimako's attention. The darker blonde couldn't voice out her curiosity then, especially when she didn't want to be rude to Hikari.

"There is no need to thank me, Hikari-san. I just don't want to see anyone upset, that's all." Shimako said softly and when Hikari wasn't looking, her eyes quickly glanced over to Yaya in concern. When Hikari started to speak again, her eyes immediately turned back to look at the other blonde.

"But…you're in St Lulim." Hikari said quietly.

Yoshino giggled as she tried to suppress the sound by clasping her hands over her mouth. When her giggle subsided, she wiggled a finger at Hikari with a grin. "Whether Shimako-san is in St Lulim, St Miator or St Spica, she still doesn't want to see anyone upset! And because of that she always tries her best to resolve whatever it is that is bothering the students! That is why she is the most beloved Rosa Gigantea en bouton! The successor of Rosa Gigantea when she graduates!"

Shimako let out a quiet sigh. She knew that the election wasn't even up yet, not when both of the Roses' members weren't even present. She also knew that she didn't have that kind of admiration from the other students, she didn't quite pay any attention to them unless it had brought up to her attention. She also knew that she didn't want to become Rosa Gigantea when her Onee-sama graduates; she didn't want to be burdened or trapped down by anything. So after Yoshino had said what a friend would have said, she shook her head in denial before looking away from the eyes that were looking at her in surprise.

"I do not plan on becoming Rosa Gigantea." She softly said.

Yumi had to place a hand over her mouth to suppress the shock that she had heard. Yaya was quite surprise by the fact as well, especially when Yoshino's words had her believed that Shimako would make a great Rosa Gigantea even though she didn't understand the system that well. So when Yaya turned to look at Yumi's face after hearing some kind of a choking noise from the girl, she understood what Yumi wanted to say from her expression. So while no one had taken the chance to jump at Shimako for an explanation, she took that chance to do so.

"Why not, Shimako-san?" The ebony hair girl asked curiously.

Shimako opened her mouth to reply but before words could come out, there were noises coming from outside the room. Curious and quite scared, a feeling that she didn't think she would feel, as she turned to look at the door. She could feel her heart beating loudly within her ribcage, and if she was to listen closely to everyone's heart that was in the room, she could hear their heart beats as well. So whatever the noise was, she could feel that it wasn't going to be good. Her instinct was right when the door was opened and Sister Hamasaka appeared with the two first years in front of her, looking very depressed. _'Well, it seems like we have been caught.'_ She thought and although she wanted to giggle at the situation that the group was in, she had to hold it in.

"I see, a tea party." Sister Hamasaka commented as she shot each and every single one of the girls a look that could chill their bones, yet Shimako was completely unfazed by it. "You have broken a rule, and I know what kind of punishment you will be taking. Please, report to me in my office tomorrow bright and early in the morning." She then turned before speaking again, in a stern tone. "Please, go back to your own room now."

The rest of the girls quickly stood up and returned to their rooms. While Yumi and Yoshino were a little shaky from receiving Sister Hamasaka's wrath, Shimako was quite amused by the situation that she had let herself be caught in. She knew that the punishment might not even be easy tomorrow, but at least she had gotten some sort of an amusement out of tonight. Also, she had gotten to know the name of the girl she had been thinking about, Yaya. She would be able to get to know about Yaya more tomorrow, and that was the only reason why she was looking forward to this 'punishment' that Sister Hamasaka was speaking of.

**-x-**

All seven girls were standing inside a chapel while wearing a maid outfit. The punishment that Sister Hamasaka had bestowed on them was to clean the chapel's staircase spotless. Since the chapel had been left unused for such a long time, it had gathered dust to the point that it was quite thick. Normally, the chapel would be taken care of by the nuns of the school, but since Sister Hamasaka wanted them to rest she had thought that the girls would use a little bit of exercise. Then again, she had said that the girls could use this punishment to cleanse away their sin for breaking the Strawberry Dorm's rule. And with all the instructions had been given out, that the girls had to clean every single step of the stairs until the middle of the afternoon, the Head Sister left. The girls had been staring up at the chapel with a defeated look, except for Shimako and Yoshino, and wanted some kind of miracle to come and save them.

"I got us into this mess!" Chiyo quickly said as she turned and bowed her head in shame. "I will clean all of the steps!" And with that, she set off to do her task while Tsubomi following suit, chanting that she wanted to help to.

Shimako giggled at the two energetic first years before she turned to the remaining girls and smiled that serene smile. "Let's help them, ne?"

The other girls nodded with a determination smile as they gathered up cleaning tools and started to clean the stairs. Shimako, Yoshino and Yumi had offered to take the stairs at the top while Hikari, Yaya and Tamao taking the ones in the middle. The two first years and Nagisa were taking the one at the bottom. They were working quite hard in order to clean the stairs, though not a single one of them didn't stop to look up at where the younger Roses were at. Yumi was patiently cleaning each of the steps, while Yoshino had taken it up as a challenge to make the stairs sparkle. The two girls' enthusiasm didn't quite compete with Shimako's. While the darker blonde was swiping down the dirt of the stairs, she still held that angelic look as if she was blessing the stairs with her serene smile. When the sunlight had changed its cause, it had let its ray to shine down upon Shimako to make her truly look like she was blessing her holy light down upon the stairs that she had touched. Such a sight would be difficult to forget.

"I feel a little guilty for this tea party." Nagisa said softly as she continued to gaze up at Shimako. In her eyes, it looked like she was gazing up at a real angel that she had called her friend. Such a word had made it unbelievable that she would actually have an angel as a friend.

"But she's having fun though." Yaya commented as she smiled up at the darker blonde. As if the latter had sensed her smile, Shimako looked down and over at Yaya before she flashed a warm smile upon the ebony hair girl. If Yaya was blushing, she had done a great job of hiding it.

"You're right, Yaya-chan. She's smiling, isn't she?" Hikari said with a happy smile. To be able to gaze up at a girl that resembled so much to an angel, she had thought to herself as being extremely lucky and blessed.

"She really is enjoying herself." Tamao said with a joyful nod. Then a clattering sound caught her ears and when she turned to look, she saw Chiyo was carrying a heavy ladder towards the stairs. Worried about the girl's safety, she was about to go and offer the younger girl some help but Nagisa had quickly risen from her spot and had ran down to offer her help to the younger girl.

"Chiyo-chan, let me help you!" Nagisa said enthusiastically as she offered out her hands. Unfortunately, the younger girl was being quite stubborn as she shrugged off Nagisa's offered hands.

"It's alright, Nagisa-onee-sama, I can do it on my own." Chiyo said in a strained voice as she continued to heave the ladder up on her shoulder, while dragging her feet towards the stairs.

"Oh my." Shimako gasped quietly as she had quickly noticed what was going on below. Upon hearing her gasp, Yoshino and Yumi had halted what they were doing and looked down at the surface below. Their eyes widened at the sight and they let out a sigh. It looked like that Chiyo was refusing Nagisa's offer to help like the red head was no good to her.

While the fourth graders were watching on with the small commotion that Nagisa and Chiyo were creating, they wanted to pitch in and help. Unfortunately, Nagisa had stopped them from doing so when she had given them a _'It's alright'_ look. So they were left to only watch on while hoping that Chiyo would accept their friend's helpful offer. However, their hearts picked up its beat as Chiyo's foot started to slip from the steps. Nagisa was walking behind her and since the fall was so sudden, she didn't have the chance to stop it. In fact, she and Chiyo had both fallen from the stairs and down towards the bottom. Nagisa was taking all the damage because she didn't want the younger girl to be hurt. So because of that, she received quite a scratch from the fall upon her knee. The girls that were watching on had already reacted when they saw the fall. They had quickly descended the stairs and were about to offer their help when Chiyo burst out crying. Nagisa had stopped them with just a smile and a shake of her head when she noticed them coming over. Then the red head turned to look at the younger girl and smiled softly.

"Chiyo-chan, I'm alright." She said reassuringly. The younger girl just shook her head as tears still streamed down from her face. Nagisa gently lifted the girl's face up and wiped the tears away with her hands, before she reached into the front pocket of the apron to retrieve out her handkerchief. "Here, Chiyo-chan." She offered the younger girl the handkerchief with a smile that Chiyo thought it was too adorable.

The girl blushed and tentatively took the handkerchief in her hands. When she felt that there was something hard within the handkerchief, she unfolded it and blinked in surprise at the object before her eyes. It was the card that she had received from the Room Temp election. She had lost it yesterday when she had fallen and made a mess of the upperclassman's room. She had thought that she wouldn't be able to find it again, even though she had looked everywhere for it and even worried over it as well. So when the card was presented right in front of her, she couldn't quite hold back her tears anymore. So she let the tears freely fall from her eyes as she clutched at the card that Nagisa had made for her.

"I-I thought that I h-have l-lost it." She murmured. "I thought I w-wouldn't be able to s-see it again."

Nagisa chuckled softly as she stroked the girl's head. "I found it before I bolted out of the room yesterday." She said with a couple of nervous chuckles. "When I saw it lying there, I thought that the person that received it didn't want it anymore. When I had that thought, I was so upset but when I found that Chiyo-chan was the one that received it I was a little happy. However, I began to think why it was on the floor in the first place, and why Chiyo-chan didn't say anything about it." She paused and flashed the younger girl a happy smile. "But after hearing what you just said, it made me happier! Thank you, Chiyo-chan, for clearing out my concerns and worries."

The younger girl blushed even harder at the praise. The rest of the other girls watched on with adoration in their eyes. It was a rare moment for them to see Nagisa's sweet side towards the underclassmen. They were smiling at the two girls at they talked about their worries and concerns, especially when the younger girl's worries had been cleared by Nagisa. It looked as if they were real sisters.

"Nagisa-chan is amazing." Hikari said in amazement.

"As expected from Nagisa-san." Yoshino said as she smiled at the scene below her. The other girls nodded with a knowing smile.

The scene was so touching that Shimako couldn't hold in her emotions anymore. She let her tears freely fall without her notice as she watched on. Yaya was the first to notice the tear when she had quickly glanced over her way. Even though the sight of Shimako smiling and enjoying her time with the girls was enough to move her, the sight of Shimako crying moved her even more. She had seen Hikari cry before and it had upset her when she saw those tears in her best friend's eyes. Yet, when she saw Shimako's tears, it hurt her more than it was supposed to. It was as if a sharp-pointed arrow had pierced through her heart, and she would give anything to see Shimako's smiling face once more. So without much of a word or knowledge of her action, her body acted out on its own. Before she knew it, and before Shimako and the other girls could figure out what was going on, Yaya had lifted up her hand and gently wiped the tears away from Shimako's face. The sudden move surprised Shimako and had made her cheeks warmed up at the other girl's touch. When Yaya had realized what she was doing, her cheeks turned scarlet as she quickly withdrawn her hand and turned her head away to hide the crimson blush.

"I…um…I'm sorry." She quickly stuttered an apology while not expecting the dark blonde to accept it.

"It's alright. I don't mind." Shimako murmured softly before she turned to Nagisa and Chiyo, whose were watching the scene that had just played out. She flashed them an encouraging smile before she turned to motion her head towards the stairs. "Shall we finish this up?" The girls all nodded in response as they resumed back to where they were working at.

Yaya was quite surprise that the Angel of Lillian had accepted her apology, and she couldn't help but feel happy because of it. When she turned towards Shimako once more, her dark hazel eyes met with the dark grey ones and she had to blush at the depth within the other girl's eyes. Although their eyes only met for a few seconds, to her it was enough to make her heart beat as fast as it was at that moment. She surely didn't know what was going on, especally when she couldn't just go and ask her heart what the heck it was beating fast for. Her face then turned a few shades darker when Shimako offered her a sweet smile.

"Thank you for taking care of me before, Yaya-san. I really do appreciate it." The darker blonde said as she turned to move pass Yaya to climb up the stairs. However, she didn't fail to pass on another message that only Yaya could hear on her way up. "I hope to spend more time with you, Yaya-san."

Yaya was too stunned to respond and when she had managed to turn around, Shimako was already at her previous spot on the top of the stairs. Her heart began to warm up with the latter caught her staring up at her, and descended a smile that Yaya thought was for her. With a feeling that she couldn't quite figure out yet, she turned back to her previous task with a smile that she normally wouldn't wear, even with Hikari around.


	23. Chapter 23

**Twenty Three**

Yoshino and Yumi were sitting at the Roses' table during lunch the following week with a look that clearly said they were in deep trouble. Fortunately for them, Sachiko and Rei wouldn't be able to actually ban them from attending the event that would be happening on Saturday this week. The two fifth graders knew that if they ever do that, they would be staying with their petite soeurs throughout the night. They wanted to spend the night with their petite soeurs, and they really did want to see their petite soeurs in dresses. So they came up with another punishment, though each differed from the other. Sachiko wasn't going to speak with Yumi for two days, and she wondered if this was Yumi's punishment or the both of them. As for Rei, she was going to be harder on Yoshino more than usual. However, both of the younger girls weren't aware of the punishments that had been decided by their Onee-samas.

"Umm…Onee-sama…" Yumi softly said as she chanced a glance over to where Sachiko was sitting beside her, hoping that the raven hair beauty would utter one word to her. The girl knew that she was in trouble the moment that she had arrived back from cleaning the church. Sachiko was waiting at the Strawberry Dorm's gate for her with a very unhappy expression. Well, unhappy wouldn't be it, it would be disappointed. She had never seen Sachiko that disappointed, including the cold look that the older girl was giving to her. Sachiko never said a word when she approached her. The raven hair girl only turned and started to walk towards the dorm while Yumi followed behind her.

The Ogasawara heiress continued to sip her tea in total silent. She had heard her petite soeur's desperate tone when the girl had tried to reach her. However, a punishment was a punishment and she wasn't going to let Yumi off of the hook, even if she loved the girl dearly. She hoped that Yumi would learn her lesson, although at the back of her mind she already knew that the younger girl already did.

"…Rei-chan…" Yoshino began from the opposite end of the table as she slowly lifted her gaze up to Rei. She also knew that she was in trouble from the stern stare from her cousin when she arrived back with Yumi after cleaning the chapel on Sunday. She didn't know what her punishment would be, though she hoped that there wouldn't be any to begin with. Unlucky for her, Rei wasn't going to give her any slack when the latter had reached the point that _discipline_ should be taught properly upon the younger girl.

"_Onee-sama_." Rei sternly corrected as she looked over at her cousin. "I will _not_ answer you next time if you do _not_ address me properly, _Yoshino_."

Yoshino was slightly stunned at the rather cold voice that Rei was emitting. So she looked away from her cousin and casted her eyes down at her lap, while her hands were curling up into fists upon her lap. "I…I'm sorry, Onee-sama…" She uttered out a quiet reply before firmly pressing her lips together so she would be able to stop herself from saying anything further that would make mutter worse.

Although Shimako desperately wanted to help her two friends, she couldn't. She knew that in the seniors' eyes, she was the wiser and more mature of the other two. So if things like this would to happen, she was supposed to be there and guide them out of it. Yet, she was with them all because of her one selfish reason; Nanto Yaya. Even though Sei had let her off of the hook because the older Rosa Gigantea wanted her petite soeur to actually have some fun, Shimako couldn't help but feel guilty over her two closest friends' punishment. She had already figured out the two punishments, and she doubted that the other two had come even close to comprehend the punishments yet. So when she couldn't do anything but watch on, she let out a small sigh before casting her eyes away from the two young victims.

On the other side of the cafeteria, Yaya, Hikari, Tamao and Nagisa were having lunch together but they didn't stop to observe the situation coming from the Roses' table. Even though they had properly been punished by Sister Hamasaka, cleaning the chapel together with the three youngest Roses was actually fun. They didn't expect that Yoshino and Yumi would be receiving yet another punishment from their Onee-sama, however. So Yaya and Hikari had entered the cafeteria and joined the table where Tamao and Nagisa were occupying in, they had felt the tension from the Roses' table when they had walked past it.

"I'm not sure if we should help them or not." Hikari said quietly as her eyes travelled from Yoshino to Yumi with sympathy in her eyes. "They look like their mothers had banned them from eating sweets."

"I'm sure that Shimako-san can think of something." Nagisa said in a hopeful tone as she studied the dark blonde girl. Unfortunately, she had misunderstood the look of desperate and guilt from Shimako that she had thought the girl was trying to think of a way to pull Yoshino and Yumi out from their punishments.

Yaya sighed and shook her head. "Shimako-san is at a loss. Even she can't think of anything to help. After all, she was with them." She said as her eyes studied Shimako's face expressions.

"Yeah, and even if one of us was to go over there, I can't imagine what would happen." Nagisa said as she began to imagine the consequences. When an image of Sachiko giving her a very cold look that could chill her to the bone, and an image of Rei telling her that it was none of her concern in a voice that could freeze her for all eternity, she couldn't help but shudder at just the thought. "That is…scary…"

"I wonder how long their punishments going to be." Tamao said as she continued to watch the Roses. Even with all that was going on; the eldest of the Roses didn't seem to have any difficulty to chat to each other and laughing with one another. They acted as if they didn't even feel any tension that was going on around in their table. They were so mysterious in their own way that it had confused Tamao. She couldn't get a proper reading on them.

**-x-**

"So you got asked to be _a girl_'s date this Saturday?" Sei asked Eriko, thoroughly amused at the fact that Eriko wasn't too pleased that she had attracted girls in a way that she didn't even want to.

"How many times do I have to answer this?" Eriko asked with annoyance clearly shown in her voice. "I had politely declined her request and told her the reason. Is that not enough for you?"

Sei gave her a toothy grin and shook her head. "I want detail! As in…I want to know the girl's expression when you told her that you're straight!"

Eriko could only sigh as she really wanted to put her face in her hands. She didn't know why but Sei could always push her buttons to the point that she just wanted to bang her head against a wall, or a table. She even wondered how Youko could even deal with such a woman. If she could see what Youko could see in Sei, she knew that things would be different between Sei and her. Unfortunately, they had started to fight during elementary school and even though the memory wasn't pleasant, it was at least one of the fondest memories that she had with Sei. After all, it was because of the fights that they had become friends.

"Sei." Youko spoke softly as she giggled behind her hand. "I think we can all imagine the look on that girl's face. Also, I'm very sure that Eriko has forgotten about it."

Sei let out a big sigh of disappointment as she leant back with her arms crossed. "That's such a shame. It would have been quite entertaining to see Eriko's face while she describes it too."

"Idiot." Eriko retorted as she shot a challenging look at the oldest blonde of the Roses.

"Big forehead." Sei countered indifferently. That had gotten quite a stir from the subject, however, though she didn't quite care. She watched as Eriko's eyes began to twitch, then her hands began to twitch and before long the girl's forehead had formed quite a huge frown line.

"Y-You!" Eriko half exclaimed as she pointed a finger at Sei, completely forgotten about her surrounding much to her Lillian's title. "I will get you for this!"

At first, Sei only gave her a look of disinterest before she burst into laughter. She was clutching her stomach as her laughter only increased and she knew that if Youko and Shimako weren't sitting at both of her sides, she would actually roll off of her seat and laugh on the floor. While the older Rosa Gigantea was laughing, Youko was giggling softly behind her hand as she tried her best to not join her object of desire. Unfortunately, Youko couldn't quite hold it in anymore so she let it out but her laughter wasn't as loud or bad compared to Sei's. Shimako had stopped her train of thoughts when she felt her Onee-sama shaking beside her. She had turned to see what had gotten into the older girl and wasn't at all surprise when she witnessed Sei doubling over in laughter.

When the laughter had died down, well, when Youko's laughter had died down, she had wiped a single tear from her eyes due to her laughter as she turned to look at her friend. "I'm sorry, Eriko." She said, sincerity coaxing her words.

The brunette sighed and shook her head. She then turned to observe the people at her table before sighing again. There was an unspoken objective between Sei, Youko and herself and unfortunately that objective hadn't been reached. Sachiko, Rei, Yoshino and Yumi weren't amused or paying attention to what the three older Roses had played out for them. At least it had caught Shimako's attention even though the girl wasn't as amused as her Onee-sama was. She knew what the younger girls did wasn't acceptable in their Onee-samas' eyes, except for Sei, but the punishment was a little bit harsh when they had already paid their debt to Sister Hamasaka. She just felt sympathy towards the younger Roses that were under their Onee-samas' punishments.

"You four," Eriko started after clearing her throat to gain the four girls that she was addressing to. When she received absolutely no response, she sighed and shook her head before trying again. "Ogasawara Sachiko, Hasekura Rei, Shimazu Yoshino and Fukuzawa Yumi."

At the sound of the current Rosa Foetida's commanding voice, all four girls that had been called out turned their attention to the older Rosa Foetida. The brunette looked at every single one at them before letting out a sigh. "You four…are giving us a headache."

Sachiko blinked, unsure of what Eriko had meant so she looked over at Youko for guidance. The latter quickly noticed the questioning look and smiled gently at her. "What she means is Yoshino and Yumi already had their punishment from Sister Hamasaka. We all both know that Sister Hamasaka is very strict, so there is no need for you and Rei to be giving your petite soeurs punishments when they have already learned their lessons." She then turned over to look at the two younger girls and smiled. "Right, girls?"

Both of them nodded in confirmation before looking over at their Onee-samas. Youko chuckled before turning back to her petite soeur. "We are here to learn, make mistakes and learn from them. We are also here to make friends and have fun. If you don't loosen up a little bit, you will let the world pass you by without any knowledge behind the true meaning of having fun."

Sachiko sighed, knowing that what her Onee-sama said was right. Yumi had received enough punishment from Sister Hamasaka, the woman herself was scary enough to be her punishment anyway. Besides, she did wonder if she could go two days without talking to the girl that she loved. She doubted that she would be able to. She also knew that would only make Yumi panic and that was the last thing that she wanted the younger girl to feel. So, with a small sigh, she turned to look at her own petite soeur and offered the girl a small smile.

"Yumi, I apologize for being too hard on you."

Yumi smiled brightly up at the raven hair girl, having to hear the latter's voice after for so long even though it was just several hours. The smile quickly faded as she shook her head. "No, Onee-sama, I was at fault and for that, I should be the one apologizing."

And before Yoshino, Rei or Sachiko could utter a word, Sei loudly cleared her throat to stop them. When they all looked at her, she grinned and offered them her peace sign. "Apologize in your own time, right now I'm truly interested in what happened during the punishment."

**-x-**

"Grande soeurs to the rescue huh?" Shizuma commented with amusement as she and Miyuki watched the Roses table from where they were sitting. It wasn't the first time that Miyuki had lunch with Shizuma. It was just far too long that she had finally gotten Shizuma to sit down with her and have a nice lunch.

"They are not as strict as their petite soeurs." Miyuki said with a little chuckle. "Although, I can see that the elder Roses are more relaxed and well maintained than the younger ones."

Shizuma turned to look at her friend skeptically, before she burst into a fit of quiet giggles. Miyuki turned to raise an eyebrow at her friend, wondering what had gotten to her. After Shizuma had calmed down, she motioned her head over to the Roses' table before getting started on what she thought of them, especially Rosa Gigantea, Rosa Chinensis and Rosa Foetida.

"You may think that they are well maintained, Miyuki, but you must know, they are not like us." Shizuma gave her friend a small smile before sighing. "You know that I like to observe people, and from what I can see from those three girls they are only putting up a brave face so their petite soeurs wouldn't worry about them."

"Well, what have you gathered from observing them, Shizuma?" Miyuki asked as she brought her teacup to her lips.

"Satou Sei seems to be torn between her feelings for Mizuno Youko and the scar in her heart." Shizuma began as she gazed down at her tea. "She acts all out-going and happy on the outside, but inside she is confused and unbalanced. One wrong move from Youko would turn her world upside down."

Miyuki sighed and shook her head. "And Youko-san has feelings for Sei-san but she is too afraid to tell her, is that it?"

Shizuma chuckled and nodded her head. "Yes, and don't look so disappointed Miyuki. There are plenty of fishes in the sea."

Miyuki shot a glare at her friend before sighing once again. "There's a very high possibility that I will be seeing my fiancé this Saturday. I'm not going to chase after a dream that will not come true."

Shizuma just shrugged before she set her eyes on the older brunette of the Roses. "Torii Eriko, although she seems to be well maintained and calmed, but when it comes to deal with the attraction of the female population at our three schools, she seems to be on the edge of it all." She paused just to let out a small chuckle. "We all know that she's straight but it's still amusing to see the girls chasing her as if she is some fine specimen."

"Every single one of these girls is a fine specimen to you, Shizuma." Miyuki scolded her lightly.

"Not really." Shizuma softly commented as her deep hazel eyes glanced over to where Nagisa was sitting. "Only one of those _fine specimens_ can bloom into a beautiful flower."


	24. Chapter 24

**Twenty Four**

Chikaru sighed as she regarded the two other Student Council Presidents and the Etoile. It was only two days until the actual event coming to play, and she had so many things to do until then. She didn't quite have the time to sit here and watch as the other Student Council Presidents exchanging challenging glares. She was glad that Shizuma was presence but even so the silver hair girl was just there to observe and agree on whatever that was needed for her to agree on. Just as usual she felt like she was going to be at the meeting room for longer than she'd expect it.

"How is the decoration coming along, Toumori-san?" Miyuki asked as she regarded the blonde.

"It's coming along very well, thank you for your concern, Rokujou-san." Replied Shion as she smiled a sarcastic smile at the other girl. "I hope that we all would taste the finest food from St Miator at the event."

Miyuki smiled at the blonde, knowing full well that the other girl knew that it was a force smile. "Of course, our recipe will be of a very high standard."

Shizuma suppressed an annoyed sigh as she observed the other two silently killing one another with their eyes. Her eyes then soon drifted over to where Chikaru sat with a look of utter disappointment, something that she had never seen the dark hair girl had whenever she was in this meeting room. So instead of paying attention to the other two, she decided to pay attention to Chikaru and addressed her.

"Minamoto-san, is there something wrong?"

Chikaru blinked out of her thought as she regarded the Etoile. She then smiled and shook her head. "No, nothing is wrong. I just hope that Yoshino-chan and Yumi-chan are doing alright without me at the club."

Shizuma smiled softly at the other girl. "As long as Toudou-san and Satou-san are there, I am sure that they are fine."

**-x-**

"Are you sure that we should let Rosa Gigantea in charge of this?" Yoshino asked in curiosity as she nodded her head over to where Sei was poking her finger at the material of the dresses they were going to make.

"She's the oldest one, right?" Yumi said illogically as she could think of many ways that Sei might or might not be able to help them in making a dress on time.

"I'm not sure if she has any experiences in making a dress, let alone being in charge while Chikaru-sama is having a council meeting." Yoshino said as she sighed. "We're not going to make it." She commented under her breath but Yumi caught it nonetheless.

"Yoshino-san." Yumi said softly as she gently nudged her friend. When the other girl turned to her, she pointed a finger toward where Shimako was sitting in front of the tailoring machine. "Look."

Yoshino turned to where her friend's finger was pointing at before she grinned widely, her eyes shone with pure hope that her dress might get done before the actual event after all. Without a word she quickly moved over to Shimako with so much excitement that had left Yumi to giggle behind her hand.

"Yumi-onee-sama."

Yumi immediately turned around to where her name had been softly mentioned. She looked down at the girl with the teddy bear and smiled softly. She then lowered her body down at the girl's level and regarded her with a cheerful look. "Yes, Kagome-chan?"

"Who is Shimako-onee-sama going with to the dance?" Kagome asked innocently as she looked over at the Rosa Gigantea en bouton. The question surprised Yumi as she didn't know how to answer that question. She didn't ask her friend about it either. She had thought that there wasn't anyone that would interest her friend, so she didn't try to bother Shimako with a question that would somehow bother the girl. So with an apologetic smile and a gentle shake of her head, Yumi opened her mouth to respond.

"I'm sorry, Kagome-chan, but I don't know the detail to that."

Kagome nodded and turned to leave, leaving Yumi to ponder about whom it was that Shimako was making the dress for to impress them. Then again, since it was Shimako she didn't think that the girl would need any dress to impress anyone. Her angelic face was enough to move any heart that would look her way, and she didn't have any doubt that those hearts had somewhat lost hope in trying to gain the Angel of Lillian's attention.

"Alright, I have decided!" Sei suddenly announced as she looked up at no one in particular with a determination look in her eyes. Everyone had stopped what they were doing and turned their attention to the Rosa Gigantea. "I shall not wear a dress!"

Yoshino and Yumi only stared at their senior in utter confusion before the words that the other girl had said registered in their minds. They then began to imagine Sei turning up at the event wearing absolutely nothing. Once that image had registered in their minds, their faces turned red and they felt as if they were going to faint from the amount of heat that was gathering around their faces. Shimako only blinked at her Onee-sama's declaration before she smiled.

"Are you going to wear a tuxedo, Onee-sama?"

Sei turned to her petite soeur and grinned. "Yes! That is what I am wearing!"

"Do you even have a tuxedo ready, Rosa Gigantea?" Yoshino asked after she calmed down from the disturbing image of the older girl.

"Of course I do!" Chimed Sei as she gave the underclassmen a toothy grin. "I came here all prepared!"

"So who are you taking to the dance, Rosa Gigantea?" Yumi asked.

Sei cocked her head to the side as she thought about the question. She had already known who she was going to take to the dance. The only question that Yumi should be asking was 'Do you have the courage to ask Youko?'

"It's a surprise, okay?" Sei said with a secretive wink. Yumi sighed and shrugged it off. She'd find out at the dance anyway.

The girls then went back to work on their dresses, all of them determined to finish their dresses before the day would end tomorrow. It wasn't long until Chikaru returned from the meeting and observed the club room. When she saw the girls busying themselves with the dresses that she had helped them designed, she smiled in approval until her eyes landed on Sei. The taller girl was sitting at the corner of the room with her eyes staring off into space. Chikaru sighed as she guessed what the older girl was thinking about. She wanted so much to go over there and give Sei some sort of hints, but since she had so much to do she didn't think that she could put her work off any longer. So trying her best to ignore the urge to come to Sei's aid – even though the girl surely didn't need it – Chikaru walked over to her work station and began working on her own dress. She had almost finished it, and she couldn't wait to move on to the dresses that she had designed for her lovely and adorable club members; Kizuna, Remon and Kagome.

**-x-**

Yaya had decided to skip the Saintly Chorus practice on that day. She couldn't concentrate or even try to focus on the note that she was trying to sing. No matter how hard she tried, the pitch was off and she had interrupted the practice. So in the end she had decided to skip practice to gather her thoughts. She had remembered the moment that Hikari had returned to their room with the most cheerful and alluring smile that she had ever seen. She felt jealous that it wasn't her that her best friend had smiled like that. She was jealous of Amane, the star of St Spica, the Spica Prince. If only she could be brave enough and come out to her best friend, then maybe she wouldn't have to feel such painful emotion.

"_Yaya-chan! Guess what?" Hikari had come rushing in the room once she had opened the door. Yaya was sitting at the edge of her bed, reading over her Saintly Chorus book while waiting for her best friend to return. She was also trying to figure out the emotions that were swirling within her and had settled down in her stomach whenever Toudou Shimako was near. She didn't quite feel such an emotion when Hikari was near, so it was hard for her to even comprehend this new feeling._

_Yaya looked up from her book and gave her friend a small smile. "Ogasawara-sama had finally paid attention to you?" She asked teasingly as she watched the other girl blushed. _

_Ogasawara Sachiko's demeanor was the same as Ohtori Amane. They had both sat down and started comparing the Roses' members with the famous characters of the three Astrea's schools. The only people that would come close to Amane's personality were Ogasawara Sachiko and Hasekura Rei. Since then Hikari had tried to imagine Sachiko speaking to her and with just that small thought had left the blonde to blush. She had already been in contact with Rei because of Yoshino, and she had told Yaya that Rei and Amane were so much alike that she had thought they were long lost sisters. Once Yaya had heard such a tale, she had burst out in fit of giggles with the shorter girl scolding her in embarrassment. When Yaya had calmed down Hikari had gone to talk about Sachiko. She listened to her blonde friend as the latter talked about how difficult it was to be under Sachiko's presence as if the Ogasawara heiress was the Princess, and Hikari was nothing but a small commoner. Both of them had heard about Sachiko's family and how she had been raised to be the lady that she was today from Yumi and Yoshino. But while Hikari felt like she was nothing but a common girl, Yaya felt like the older girl was just another wealthy being that needed somewhat of a rescue._

"_Really, Yaya-chan, you should stop teasing me about it." Hikari muttered much to her friend's amusement. _

"_Sorry, I can't help it." Yaya responded with an apologetic smile. "Since it's not that, then what is it, Hikari?"_

_Hikari immediately brightened up as she skipped over to where Yaya was sitting, and stood before her friend with a huge smile upon her innocent face. "Amane-sempai asked me to be her partner at the dance!"_

_She didn't know why but all Yaya could feel was a tug of pain upon hearing those words. Her infatuation with Hikari had got to end since nothing good was going to happen if she continued to have such a feeling for the other girl. However, how was she supposed to stop the pain that was slowly spreading throughout her body from her heart? She knew that she could have asked the girl to go with her to the dance, but she feared that she would only be forcing Hikari to agree because she was her friend. And if Hikari was to agree then she would have to reject Amane, the woman whom she seemed to now love more than anything, including herself._

"_That's good for you, Hikari! Congratulations!" Yaya said as she put up a fake happy smile that Hikari didn't quite notice._

'_What am I supposed to do?'_ Yaya thought as she sighed.

She was absent mindlessly walking to clear her head, but she didn't think that she would be entering the St Lulim's school ground. With a small shrug of her shoulders, she continued on and didn't expect to actually find her way to Chikaru's club room. She heard the happy chatters from inside the room and for a moment, she wanted to join in that group just so she could forget about everything that had been worrying her, everything that had pained her, _Hikari_.

While she was standing outside the door and pondering on what to do, Yaya didn't notice that the door had been slid opened and revealed the angelic woman that had been making her confused. Yaya could only blink as she looked over to Shimako, whom was also looking at the long ebony hair girl with surprise in her eyes. It wasn't long until Shimako took control of the situation and bowed her head at Yaya in a greeting.

"Good afternoon, Yaya-san."

Quickly coming out of her state of mind, Yaya bowed her head back before responding in a surprise tone. "Good afternoon!" When she had caught her somewhat high pitch tone, she cleared her throat to get her normal voice back. "Shimako-san."

Shimako smiled softly at her. "Are you looking for anyone in particular, Yaya-san?"

Yaya blushed in embarrassment for having no answer to respond to the dark blonde's question. After all, her feet carried her here without much of her knowledge. Shimako, on the other hand, had taken Yaya's blush and silent as the answer to her question, and she couldn't help but giggle softly behind her hands. That giggle only caused the blush on Yaya's cheeks to deepen, but the real reason for the Saintly Chorus' member's cheeks to deepen like that was because Shimako had taken Yaya by the hand and stepped out of the room, thus sliding the door shut before giving the girl's hand a light tug.

"Would you like to take a short walk with me, Yaya-san?" She asked softly and even though her face was showing it, the hope that her face couldn't muster was showing in her eyes.

Yaya could only nod in confirmation before she was being led by Shimako. She was marveling at the skin to skin contact that was from Shimako's soft hand. She had never noticed that the other girl's skin was this soft. She also couldn't help but compare Shimako to Hikari and even noted that Shimako's skin was far softer than Hikari's. Not only that, the contact had made her stomach felt funny and not even Hikari could even do that. If this was some twisted attraction that she was feeling towards Shimako, then she doubted that the latter would feel something _remotely similar_ to it.

"Are you nervous, Yaya-san?" Shimako asked as her eyes were focusing on the road before her.

"Why do you think that?" Yaya asked as her eyes were staring at hers and Shimako's connected hands.

"I can tell from the way that you're holding my hand." Came Shimako's response as she rounded the corner and led the both of them outside of the St Lulim's building.

"Oh." Yaya responded and mentally slapped herself at how stupid she must have sounded.

Shimako was silent during the walk and Yaya was obediently following her to wherever that the blonde was taking her. When Shimako stopped at the garden that St Lulim had, she let go off of Yaya's hand and turned to face the girl. Both girl admitted that they missed that small contact, even if it was just a little.

"Do I make you nervous, Yaya-san?" Shimako asked once more and she could see that she had taken the other girl by surprise. If the expression that Yaya was showing on her face at the moment, she regretted for having to ask. Then again, she desperately wanted to know if that was why Yaya hadn't gone as far as speaking to her more than five minutes whenever they would meet up.

"Well…you don't make me nervous…" Yaya started and was grateful that Shimako was waiting patiently for her to gather her thoughts to finish what she had started. She let out a small sigh and felt like running a hand through her hair, but stopped herself from doing so. "You just make me feel…confused." _'Was that a good enough answer?'_ Yaya mentally asked herself.

Shimako smiled in understanding and nodded. "I see. Is this a good confusion or bad confusion?"

Yaya blinked before she thought about the question once more. "I…at the moment…I can't figure it out."

"Would you like to accompany me to the dance, Yaya-san?"

Taken once again by surprise, Yaya immediately looked at Shimako with her eyes wide opened. Her mouth was slightly agape. The question was too sudden, but even though she was surprise there was another feeling within her heart that she didn't quite understand. While Hikari had shattered her hope, Shimako was giving her a second hope that she didn't know was looking for. However, it was as if Shimako had effortlessly fixed up her heart and was giving it a feeling that she didn't think she would experience; happiness. So much to her acknowledgement, her lips spread up into a full, happy smile as she nodded her head. She had never thought that being noticed by the person that she wanted them to notice her would feel so good.

"Yes, I would be honored to accompany you to the dance, Shimako-san."

Shimako, whom she didn't think that Yaya would agree so easily, let out a sigh of relief before she beamed at the other girl. "I'm glad! You have no idea how fast my heart was beating when I asked you that question."

Yaya cocked an eyebrow before she smirked, feeling like she was back to her usual self once more. "Oh? Did I really make your heart flutter that much?"

The ebony hair girl appreciated the blush that was spreading on the blonde's cheeks. Furthermore, she thought that it was purely beautiful to witness such a significant sight. So without much of a word, Yaya closed the distance between them as she lifted her hand to cradle the other girl's face in her palm. Her hazel eyes shining in adoration as she gazed at the girl before her.

"Now, I'm not sure if I should feel honored or blessed at the fact that I will be accompanying you to the dance." She murmured softly, knowing that if she was to move an inch closer to Shimako, their lips would be touched. "You're an Angel, Shimako-san."

* * *

_A/N_

__I always feel bad for Yaya when Hikari didn't return her feelings. Well, now, with fanfiction, I don't feel bad anymore ~ And now I'm missing the drama -sigh- Oh well, I need to do something dramatic for the next chapter ;)


	25. Chapter 25

**Twenty Five**

Another rainy day during their exchange program. It reminded her of the rainy day that she had saw Youko walking with Miyuki. Even though they did go out on a date, she was still unsure on how Youko was feeling toward her. Sei had finally realized that she had feelings for the other girl. The question was, would she be able to find the courage to see if Youko felt the same way? If only that she could read Youko's mind then she wouldn't be thinking this hard in class. She was thankful that the teacher didn't call her out on it. Besides, class was almost over.

She had started to pack up before the bell rung. When it did, she was the first to get out of class. She was hoping that Youko would wait for her, even if the road from St Lulim to St Miator took quite a little bit of time to cross. Even though Miyuki would be there the second time, considering the fact that they attended the same school, it didn't quite stop Sei from running in the rain towards the St Miator's ground. Whether she was fast enough to reach there, there was still a higher chance that Youko would accept Miyuki's offer to share her umbrella once more. She never understood it but Youko never seemed to be carrying an umbrella around her, unless if the rain literally poured down the moment that her eyes were open.

Sei's heart was pounding within her ribcage when she had entered the St Miator's ground, but she couldn't find Youko anywhere. She found Miyuki though, on the way towards the school. If Youko wasn't with Miyuki, then where would the other girl be? Then again, why was she so worried about Youko that she had to run all that way to get her? The other girl could always get help on her own, and it wasn't like they wouldn't be seeing each other. They were roommates after all, weren't they? Yet, why did it feel like she wanted them to be more than roommates? More than friends?

She was panting now as she entered the school building. There wasn't a person in sight. It looked like everyone had gone back to the dorm. Why was she still there? She still hoped that Youko would still be at the building, somewhere, waiting for her. She wasn't that all familiar with St Miator's building quite yet. In fact, she didn't even know her way to Youko's class. So while her umbrella was making a mess with its water droplets on the ground, her deep blue eyes were scanning everywhere for that familiar face she had somehow grown to love.

_Love_…She wasn't sure if she could trust that word yet. She wasn't sure if the scar in her heart could ever disappear. She wasn't sure if she could even trust herself to fall in love again. But when she spotted the familiar face of Youko, all of her doubt disappeared like it was non-existence. Even though the other girl was surprised to see her there, but Sei couldn't quite figure out why the other girl tried her best to hide her emotions. Well, it was only confused and frustrated her more. For now though, she was happy that Youko was still there and that she wasn't late in picking a friend up.

"Don't tell me, Sei, you came here to pick me up?" Youko asked with a playful smile.

Sei rolled her eyes as she turned her back towards the other girl. "You forgot your umbrella, again, so I thought I could do you a favor and pick you up for once."

Youko could only smile then as she murmured her thanks. _'This is the second time'_ the current Rosa Chinensis thought to herself. She wanted to say it, but she wasn't sure how the blonde would react to it. She didn't want to make Sei to feel like she was stalking her, but the thought of her friend and secret crush would actually do such a thing warm her heart. Then again, just the act of kindness from the other girl already did.

Youko knew that it was going to rain so she had purposely left her umbrella back in the room that they shared. When the bell had rung, Miyuki and Shizuma were the first to leave the classroom. She wasn't hoping that any one of the two of them would help her get back to the dorm. No, she was hoping that a certain blonde would come pick her up like the first time that she did, even though the blonde had failed. Still, the hope was there and when she had slowly made her way to the front of the school building, she purposely stalled herself so that if she was to arrive, she wanted to see the person that she had longed for but was too afraid to express her feelings to. Unfortunately, she arrived quite too early so she had decided to ponder around the hallway before going back again. Well, that was when she saw Sei's form running towards the entrance from the window. Her eyes were twinkling in happiness and she had turned towards the direction of the school entrance, and quickly made her way towards it. The sight that greeted her instantly warmed her heart. The eyes of her dearest friend were looking frantically around for her, and _only_ her. She wished that she had enough courage to tell the other how she felt. The little date that they went back then wasn't enough to give her any courage, at all.

"Thank you for saving me from the rain, Sei." Youko said softly as the two of them made their way back to the Strawberry Dorm under the yellow umbrella. Their shoulders were almost touching, and neither one of them seemed to mind. Though the lightest of touch would send a shiver down Youko's spine, and she had enough practice to make it look like it didn't affect her. When in reality, she honestly wanted to tell Sei what the girl was doing to her.

"I'm sure that if I didn't come, there would be another student out there to 'save' you." Sei replied with a chuckle.

Youko smiled, deciding to play along as she raised a finger to her chin and tapped it lightly. "Perhaps, but it's much nicer to bother you with such trivial things."

"Well, next time it rains, you're on your own." Sei replied with a light huff. Even though it was an empty threat, she wanted to take it back when she felt the other girl shaking next to her. However, when she was to voice out her concern she realized that Youko was giggling. "Now, what is so funny about what I said?"

"Whether you like it or not Sei, I still think that you would still come pick me up when it rains."

"We can always test it out." Sei retorted.

"Test it out, you say?" Youko mused as she glanced at the blonde. "Do you prefer me running in this rain and arriving at our room completely soaked?"

"Now that isn't a bad idea." Sei quickly commented as she turned to flash a grin at the other girl. "I know that your immune system is quite strong, so you won't get sick that easily."

Youko could only roll her eyes at her. She didn't know whether or not she should take the blonde seriously at that moment. She wanted to actually slap the blonde upside the head for answering her question without much of a single thought. That would be uncharacteristic on her part and she didn't want anyone to be seeing her hitting Sei.

Nothing much was said after that and Sei had wondered if she had said something wrong. She didn't have to wonder all that long when they arrived at the dorm. Their friends were waiting for them at the lounging area when they set their feet inside. There was one extra person at the sofa though. Sei had sworn that she had seen that girl before, but for the life of her she couldn't remember where. The girl was sitting next to Shimako while her petite soeur was happily chatting to the other members of the Yumayurikai. When she and Youko closed in on the group, all she heard was the Yoshino and Yumi telling their Onee-samas about the dresses that they had finished making.

Sei took the empty seat next to Shimako and turned to look at the ebony hair girl from the younger blonde's side. After observing her for a little while, she turned to Shimako and smiled brightly at her. "Is that your date to the dance, Shimako?"

Shimako's cheeks began to turn a light crimson as she nodded. "Yes, Onee-sama, I wanted to introduce her to you."

Sei chuckled as she folded her arms. "Now, why does it feel like you're going to introduce to me your _petite soeur_?"

If anything, Shimako's blush only deepened. "Onee-sama, we are both in the same grade."

Sei waved her hand to dismiss the subject as her eyes turned to the other girl. "So, who asked who first?"

"Shimako-san did." The girl answered with a chuckle when the blush on Shimako deepened again. "My name is Nanto Yaya, a member of Saintly Chorus and currently attending St Spica. It is nice to have finally met you, Satou-sama."

"You can call me _Onee-sama_ just like Shimako." Sei winked suggestively at the ebony girl.

Yaya quickly caught on as she tipped her head to the side. "Wouldn't that make Shimako-san and I a newlywed couple?"

Sei blinked at the sudden answer before she started to laugh. Shimako, on the other hand, was blushing to the point that she could actually feel her face getting hotter by the second.

"Y-Yaya-san…" She quietly pleaded at the other girl.

"I've never seen Shimako-san blushed this much and stutter before." Yoshino commented with a playful grin.

"Me too." Yumi added with a smile.

"I say it's quite cute." Eriko said with a little giggle. "Besides, we don't get to see this much often. If only we can take Yaya-chan back to St Lillian." She let out an exasperated sigh before she settled her face down on her hands.

"Yes, if only." Youko agreed as she watched Sachiko pouring fresh tea into her awaited empty cup. "Thank you, Sachiko."

"It is not much of a trouble, Onee-sama." Sachiko replied in kind before she took her seat beside Yumi.

Yaya was blushing as the older Roses' comments and even though she had glanced over at Shimako with her pleading eyes, the younger blonde couldn't quite do anything. When the three older Roses picked up where they had left off, she found herself blushing even more at the teasing and playful comments being directed her way. Just looking at Shimako right now, she could see that the other girl was blushing as well. She felt like digging up a hole somewhere and hide from the comments that she was receiving.

"Rosa Chinensis, Rosa Foetida and Onee-sama," Started Shimako as she recovered from the embarrassment that all of the three older Roses had put her and her companion under. When she had gotten the three attentions, even quietened the comments, she gave them a genuine smile before continuing. "I think that it is best that you all can stop embarrassing Yaya-san. I am afraid to think what would happen to the three of you if I am being pushed to the limit, yes?"

Under that genuine smile the three older Roses could see some kind of malice hidden underneath it. Not only that, they had thought they felt a dark aura lurking behind Shimako's angelic presence. They had dismissed it as one of their imaginations, but it wasn't like they would easily forget. The three had began to sweat when _that_ smile was still plastering on Shimako's face as if the younger girl was only playing with them. Even though they hadn't seen the angry side of Shimako, they weren't planning on seeing it. So they quickly nodded their heads and turned back to do whatever it was that they did before they had started to tease Yaya and Shimako. Youko had turned to her tea, Eriko had turned to stare blankly at the people in the lounging area and Sei was leaning back against the sofa and staring up at the ceiling.

Shimako smiled at her accomplishment before she turned to the amazed Yaya. "I apologize about them, Yaya-san. I'm sure that they will not be teasing you like this again."

'_You got that right…'_ All three older Roses thought as their eyes quickly took a glance over at the Lillian Angel's way before withdrawing their eyes before they get caught.

Yaya only chuckled nervously as she looked at the three defeated older Roses. "I-It's okay. I don't mind."

It was then that Sachiko sighed from where she was sitting with her teacup an inch away from her lips. "If you do not mind, then I'm afraid that you will have to endure quite a few embarrassing comments from Rosa Gigantea."

Even though it wasn't the first time that Yaya had heard the Ogasawara heiress spoke, the voice from Sachiko made her straightened herself and regarded the raven hair girl respectively. "I-I'm sure I can handle her comments."

Sachiko's only response was a raise of her eyebrow but her curiosity soon disappeared as if it didn't even exist. She then turned to Yumi and smiled softly down at the younger girl. "We have quite a bit of time before dinner time. Would you care to join me for a short walk, Yumi?"

The pigtailed girl happily nodded without much of a hesitation and stood up along with her Onee-sama. Once the two had left the lounging area, Yoshino was staring at Rei with so much intensity that it was a wonder that she hadn't burned the other girl's skin off yet. Rei could feel the other younger girl's eyes on her and as much as she tried to ignore it, she just couldn't so she decided to give in with a quiet sigh.

"What is it, Yoshino?" She asked as she turned to look at her cousin whom was looking just a tad bit irritated at her…for some unknown reasons.

Before Yoshino could answer, a cheerful voice interrupted her. Her eyes turned into slits as she turned to face the rude interrupter. When her eyes landed on the smiling Chikaru, her face softened but it didn't quite hide the annoyance. "Chikaru-sama!"

Chikaru giggled at the other girl, knowing full well that she had interrupted something important but chose to ignore it. "Good day to you, Yoshino-chan." She said softly then turned to look down at Sei. She placed a gentle hand on the taller blonde's shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. "Do you have a minute, Sei?"

Sei looked up at her classmate with a raised eyebrow. She just shrugged as she stood up and excused herself before following Chikaru out of the lounge. Youko could only watch as the two went, and she didn't realize that her eyes were narrowing at the way Chikaru was _purposely_ getting too touchy-feely in front of her. She turned her head away from the scene when she had seen enough with a light huff. Eriko, sitting just the opposite side of her, noticed the sudden change of expression and began to worry.

"Is everything alright, Youko?" The head of the Yellow Rose family asked as she regarded the other with worried eyes.

Youko looked over at the brunette and gave the girl a small smile. "Yes, I am fine." She answered, leaving nothing else other than the fact that she was fine, although it was obvious that it was a lie.

Eriko just sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "Whatever you say, Youko."

Youko had gone back to sipping what was left of her tea while Eriko turned to only poke fun of her petite soeur's soeur. Yaya watched the activities that were playing from left to right at the Roses' table and inwardly she could feel a sweat threatening to drop from the side of her face. She wasn't expecting that the Roses members would be this…_how could she put this?_...weird?

"It's not what you're expecting from us, isn't it Yaya-san?" Shimako asked softly as she gazed down at her tea. Then she gently reached over and took the cup between her hands and lifted it to her mouth, barely tasting the sweet and bitter taste of the tea.

"Well…there are three members missing after all." Yaya replied with a low chuckle. "I think you all are more relaxed than St Miator and St Spica's student councils."

Eriko stopped from her fun from teasing Yoshino as she turned to nod in agreement at the ebony hair girl. "That, Yaya-chan, I have to agree. I'm not sure how long I have to be stalked by…" She lowered her voice into a whisper as she leaned forward toward Yaya. "Stalker, stalker, Toumori Shion-san."

Yaya blinked before she burst into a fit of giggles while the older girl frowned. "It is not funny, you know. It is quite uncomfortable!" Eriko puffed and that only caused the other girl to change from her giggling into pure laughter.

Somewhere around the Strawberry Dorm's hallways, two girls were in a deep conversation where no one would notice or heard them. It wasn't long until one of them had widened her eyes in shock, and let out an uncharacteristic exclamation of surprise. If anyone was near that area, they could only make out several sounds of, "WHAT?" and "INSANE?" from it. And while the girl was busy being surprised and shocked, the other one was smiling like a Cheshire cat with the many plans that she had single-handedly planned out.


	26. Chapter 26

**Twenty Six**

That was absurd.

That was _absolutely_ absurd!

How would she ever think of doing something as low as this? Well, it wasn't at all low but it would strip her off all of the dignity that she ever had, or had left. She wouldn't even be able to face _her_ again. Her friend and student council president had suggested such an absurd thing that she couldn't believe she had listened all throughout it. The girl's outrageous plans to help her find out her crush's feelings. The plans…they were all **absurd**!

Sei sighed in exasperation as she watched the other girl smiling at her as if she would soon agree to these plans of hers. She never thought that Chikaru would think up of such ridiculous plans. Sure, making Youko jealous was a nice idea, but going to the extreme of actually hurting the other girl was just too much. She knew that she didn't quite have that much time since tomorrow would be Friday, and she would have all Saturday morning to ask Youko to be her partner to the dance. However, how long would Youko be willing to wait for her? That was one of the questions that had been repeating itself over and over in her mind. Chikaru's first plan of _Finding Youko's Feelings Operation_ aka F.Y.F.O was just ridiculous.

"Chikaru, there is no way I'm going to purposely hurt Youko like that!" Sei tried her best to reason with her companion once again, hoping that the girl would understand.

Chikaru raised an eyebrow as she tilted her head to the side, her eyes fixing on Sei as if waiting for the other girl to break. "Are you sure, Sei? How else are you going to find out her feelings if you don't have the courage to do it upfront?"

That hit a nerve, Sei could just feel it. She didn't expect that Chikaru would say it. She was expecting the other girl to beat around the bushes like she had been doing for the past five minutes. What Chikaru had said made her felt weak, so weak that she couldn't comprehend why she had given the chance to love again. If she had found love then she should be holding on to it, not be a coward and let it go, right?

"I can ask her." Sei said, more to herself than Chikaru. She wasn't sure if she could, considering the fact that she hadn't noticed any affection from the other girl other than friendship.

Chikaru chuckled softly. "I guess I can't convince you after all, ne?"

Sei blinked as she looked over to Chikaru. She truly couldn't wrap her fingers around this mysterious girl. When she was about to ask what had gotten Chikaru to give up so suddenly, she saw a movement from the girl's light brown eyes and the corner of the girl's lips curling upward into a small smirk. She didn't know if the smirk was even real, or if it was a sarcastic one. But what she knew was Chikaru's sudden shift of movement that had got her senses to be completely wrapped around Chikaru's vanilla scented presence. Soon enough she felt the other girl's soft lips on her own, and while she was too shock to know what was going on, her hands instinctively went up the girl's waist to hold her in place.

The kiss didn't last more than ten seconds, and when Chikaru pulled away, it was just in time for her to hear a slight gasp coming from behind her. Sei had quickly turned around and her heart was aching in pain as she witnessed the look of pure sadness and pain within Youko's dark brown orbs. Chikaru hadn't given up after all, and that kiss was a proof of it.

While Youko and Sei just stared at each other, one out of sadness and pain while the other out of shock, surprise and sympathy, Chikaru stood at the sideline as she watched the scene played out before her. She could get a reaction from Youko if she truly wished to be pushed into the wall. The thought of getting physically hurt wasn't in her mind, so she had tossed the idea of wrapping her arms around Sei's away. Unfortunately, after another minute of watching the two of them still having a staring contest, she raised a hand to cover her mouth to let out a fake yawn.

"I guess someone has found our secret spot, Sei." She said with a fake annoyance in her tone. "Maybe we should go and find another."

That was enough to wake both of the other girls from the intense staring contest. Youko's hurtful eyes turned into anger as she directed that anger toward Chikaru. Sure, she could handle _knowing_ the fact that Sei was interested and dating someone. However, she couldn't handle the fact that she had to _witness_ the kiss between Sei and Chikaru, the first person that Sei had shamelessly declared to be her love interest. So without a word to both of the other girls, Youko quickly turned on her heels when she felt the first tear threatening to escape her eyes. She made quick movement of her feet to get away from the other two, and soon enough she found herself running toward the room that she and Sei shared. That was the last place that she would want to be in at that moment. So, after a quick decision, she changed her course and dashed over to Sachiko's room. That was the only place that she could be at the moment. She honestly didn't want to let Sei know how much she had hurt her by that one simple kiss. She just couldn't. A good friend wouldn't be crying over such small trivial thing.

Youko swung the door to Sachiko's room opened and dragged herself in. Sachiko wasn't back yet, and she knew that intruding on Sachiko's room like this was out of her character but there was no other choice. She had to get out of there. She had no place else to go except her room and Sachiko's room, and there was no way that she would want to be in her own room at this moment. So after letting the door shut behind her while the darkness of the room engulfed her, Youko let herself fell to her knees in the middle of the room and sobbed into her hands. Her sobs increased as she remembered the stabbing pain in her heart when she saw Chikaru reaching up and claiming Sei's lips. She hadn't even claim those lips, not even once, and now she knew that she had lost all hopes of gaining those lips that she had been longing for.

Youko had skipped dinner and didn't come down to the lounge after it. She had lost all appetite and she, couldn't for the life of her, could not find it even though she knew she should eat something. The sobs had died down to only a few hiccups, but she was still on the floor as she had no will to stand up just yet. She didn't even hear the approaching footsteps from outside the room, and she was sure that she didn't even hear the sound of the door opening and the sound of the flick of the light switch being turned on. When the light had gone on, she knew that Sachiko had returned and yet, despite how she had looked right now, she couldn't face the younger girl. She was the older of the two, for crying out loud! She couldn't find the will to face the younger girl an Onee-sama's job is to _not_ show that she was suffering.

Sachiko had been worrying over Youko when she didn't see the older girl at the dining hall. When she had hoped to see her Onee-sama at the lounge afterward, Youko was nowhere to be found. She had asked the members of the Yumayurikai and neither of them knew where her Onee-sama was. However, she had caught the look of sadness from Sei but the older blonde had quickly hid it when she noticed Sachiko was looking at her. The heiress had shaken it off and excused herself to reside to her room. When she was standing outside her room, she had heard quiet hiccups emitting from it. She tried her best to tell herself that it was just the rain from outside, but what she didn't prepare herself was the moment she had flicked her light on to reveal Youko on the floor, trying her best to stop her hiccup. Youko didn't even turn to look at her, and she could clearly see that the other girl's form was shaking.

"Onee-…" Sachiko had started to say but she shut her lips immediately before she let herself fully inside her room and shutting the door. She quietly moved over to Youko's frail form and kneeled down behind her. Without much of a thought, the raven hair heiress wrapped both of her arms around the older girl in a comforting gesture. "I'm here, Onee-sama." She whispered softly. "I'm here."

Youko's eyes widened at the warm embrace. Just the smallest act of kind gesture sent her into another broke down. Tears were rolling down her cheeks once more, and she had shifted her body around so that she was now clutching onto the St Miator's uniform of Sachiko's as she sobbed into her petite soeur's chest. She couldn't remember the last time she had let someone comfort her in a way that Sachiko was comforting her now. She couldn't remember where all of her pain and sadness had started. All she knew right now was crying her heart out to Sachiko as the younger girl held her like a little sister would. Petite soeur was there to support their Onee-sama, after all.

Youko didn't know how long she was in Sachiko's arms for, but it felt like forever to her. Her tears have stopped falling, though her eyes stung from all the crying that she had done. She felt bad for soaking the other girl's uniform for her selfish reason. Well, was it selfish? She didn't know but after crying her heart out, she felt somewhat better. She knew that the feeling wouldn't last long, and she wanted it to last just a little longer. At this point she didn't want to return to her room. She didn't want to see that blonde hair woman. She didn't even _want_ to be in that woman's presence.

Youko pulled away from the younger girl as her eyes casted down on the floor, to where her hands had fallen from the girl's uniform and were now resting upon the ground. "Sachiko…I have a favor to ask…" She quietly said, her voice strained from crying so long.

Sachiko just looked at her Onee-sama with sadness in her eyes. It pained her to see the older girl like this. The raven hair heiress had never seen the older girl like this before. It was always her that needed her Onee-sama's comfort, and it had never been the other way around until now. She wasn't going to forgive whatever it was that had upset Youko, even whatever _that_ was would turn out to be someone that she knew.

"Yes, Onee-sama, you can ask me anything and I will try my best to give it to you." The younger girl replied softly.

"Can I…" Youko started as her hands curled into fists underneath her. "Can I…stay here tonight?"

Sachiko's eyes softened as she observed the older girl. She had thought of offering Youko the room while she would ask Yumi and Shimako if she could stay with them. However, she thought against it and had decided to stay with her Onee-sama. She didn't quite trust Youko to be alone tonight. And if her presence would comfort the older girl then so be it.

"Of course, Onee-sama, you can stay here as long as you need to." Sachiko replied with a comforting smile just as Youko had lifted her head up to look at the younger girl.

Youko let out a weak smile, grateful that she had an understanding petite soeur such as Sachiko. No, she was grateful that she even had a petite soeur that she could rely on. "Thank you, Sachiko."

That night Youko slept soundlessly in Sachiko's warm embrace. She didn't know when it started, but she was content that there was a person out there that would care for her, no matter how much. At least in Sachiko's arms right now she felt safe, although she didn't know for how long. She had tried to forget everything that had happening but her dream was the one thing that wouldn't let her be. In her dream, the image of Chikaru kissing Sei kept on repeating without stopping. Even in the dream she couldn't even get away.

While Youko was residing in Sachiko's room for the night, Sei was waiting for her roommate to return. She knew that it was well past midnight but she didn't give a damn about it. She was sitting on her bed with her back facing against the wall, in the dark, while her dark blue eyes focused on the empty bed opposite from her. It was the simple reaction from Youko that had made her realized that the other girl shared the same mutual feelings as hers. How could she be so stupid to not see it from the beginning? The gentleness of Youko's voice whenever they were together alone. The care in Youko's eyes when they always looked her way. The way that Youko was always there whenever Sei was down. The way that Youko was _always there_ when Sei needed someone the most. How could she be so absolutely blind not to see the other girl's true feelings?

Stupid. _Stupid._ **Stupid**.

That one word ran through Sei's mind over and over as she sat there, waiting for the one that her heart yearned for. She wasn't sure whether to thank Chikaru or to cuss at the girl. In a way, she knew that Chikaru was just trying to help. And, in a way, she knew that even if she cussed the girl out, Chikaru would have been shrugging it off with a smile that said that she didn't mind about it one bit. So now that everything had happened, there was no way to take it back even if she wished to. The only thing that she could do now was wait, even if she had to wait forever.

* * *

_A/N_

__There you have it! Drama! Oh, sweet, delicious drama! I just had to make Chikaru push those two together, y'know. I feel bad for Chikaru to be viewed as the 'villain' in Youko and Sei's relationship. It can't be helped. My true intention was to put Sei and Chikaru together, now it backfired, haha. Enjoy the update. :)


	27. Chapter 27

**Twenty Seven**

Morning came and it didn't look like that Youko was getting any better. Even with Sachiko holding her while she slept, it didn't put her mind at ease when she woke up in the morning. She had noticed that the younger girl had quietly slipped out of the room. She appreciated the concern of her younger soeur but she felt like she had been troubling her enough. With a sigh, Youko slipped out from the bed and went into the bathroom to clean up. She knew that she had a little bit of time to get down to the dining hall, but her mind was elsewhere and the thought of being late didn't even cross her mind. Fortunately for her, she made it to the hall for breakfast with a minute to spare. She did her best to hide her troubled emotions as she made her way to her seat, which was next to Sachiko's. The raven hair heiress didn't look at all approving that she was there, but she kept her silence as she greeted the older girl.

"How are you this morning, Onee-sama?" Sachiko asked in a soft, quiet voice.

To others that were sitting around them, Sachiko's voice was just normal with a tint of respect underneath it. To Youko and Yumi however, they could hear the concern in her voice. Upon hearing the concern tone that Sachiko had hide, Yumi turned to look at Youko with observing eyes. Her brown orbs studied the Rosa Chinensis' body gestures as the older woman sat herself down on the chair. Even though Youko appeared to be cheerful like any other day, the pigtailed girl could clearly tell that there was something wrong. After all, she didn't see Youko joining them for dinner last night. Yumi then looked over to her Onee-sama, silently asking for permission to know what was going on with her eyes. Once Sachiko sensed her petite soeur looking at her, she turned and shook her head lightly after understanding the hidden message between those brown orbs.

"Refreshing." Youko answered with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "How are you this morning, girls?"

"Good." Sachiko murmured a reply while Yumi offered Youko one of her bright smiles.

"Great!"

"That's good." Youko murmured before Shizuma stood up to start a prayer. The Rosa Chinensis let out an inaudible sigh as she clasped her hands and closed her eyes, the prayer that morning not quite reaching her ears.

That morning went by quite slow for Youko but she couldn't bring herself to mind about it. She was still trying to get over her broken heart, even though she knew that her heart was going to break the more she gotten closer to Sei anyway. She knew that she shouldn't let herself go down that path but she did anyway. The image of Chikaru claiming Sei's lips was still clear in her head no matter how many time she tried to replace it with happy images of her friends. She had fallen and there was no one to catch her. Then again, she only wanted a particular person to catch her, but since that person was out of her reach she had no choice but to pretend that she wasn't in pain…at all.

Lunch finally came and while the girls in her class was making their way out of the room, she took her time even though she would normally be making her way toward the cafeteria at this moment. She was stalling herself just so she wouldn't have to see Sei. Yes, she was willing to give up on her lunch time because of the certain blonde. It wasn't like she had any appetite to eat anything. Her current mood wasn't allowing her to do so. So once half of the class had disappeared, she let out a small sigh before standing up. When she turned, she almost bumped into another person. If it wasn't for the pair of gentle hands on her shoulders, she knew that she would have fell down on her seat in surprise.

"Are you alright, Youko?" A soft voice spoke in concern.

Once Youko looked up at the girl before her, her eyes bore into the deepest of hazel eyes. That was when she knew that the girl before her was no other than Shizuma Hanazono, the Etoile of the three schools. Somehow, she felt embarrassed for the mood that she was in. So she took a small step back and bowed before the taller girl out of apology.

"My apologies, Etoile-sa – " She began but was cut off when a slender finger was pressed against her lips.

"Shizuma is fine, Youko." The silver hair beauty said with a smile.

Youko gave out a small smile and nodded. "Once again, my apologies, Shizuma. I'm afraid that I haven't been feeling quite well today."

Shizuma nodded as she turned her body half way toward the door. Then she motioned her hand over to the door and smiled warmly down at the slightly shorter girl. "Would you care to accompany me to lunch at the Green House, Youko?"

Although surprised by a sudden request, Youko had thought that it might do her some good if she could avoid Sei until tonight. So she smiled and nodded, hiding the surprise expression without much effort. "I would be honored to, Shizuma."

The two girls made their way out of the St Miator's building and toward the Green House. There was no word to be exchanged and neither one of them seemed to have minded. While Youko was deep in thoughts as to why Shizuma had asked her to join the taller girl for lunch, Shizuma was thinking of a way to get Youko to open up to her. Being an Etoile wasn't an easy job, but since she had witnessed Youko running down the hallway last night she couldn't help but be concerned about the Lillian's red rose. It was a rare sight for the silver hair beauty to witness the Rosa Chinensis breaking a rule. It wasn't the only rule that the oldest red rose had broken, since Shizuma knew that the Lillian's girls were _not_ to run under any circumstances.

They made it inside the Green House and walked inside. Shizuma had guided Youko to the medium-sized rounded table and insisted the girl to seat. Even if Youko had an objection, she couldn't voice it when Shizuma's voice was more of a demand than a request when she had insisted her to seat and relax while the silver hair girl prepared their lunch. Well, it was surprising that Shizuma had prepared the both of them with lunch as if she was planning to take Youko away from the cafeteria. The Rosa Chinensis had suspected that there was something else that the other girl wanted to get out of, but she couldn't figure out what it was. Shizuma wasn't that easy to read, not even Miyuki could read her at times.

Youko was still trying to figure out the intention behind Shizuma's action to notice that the silver hair beauty had returned with a tray full of food, and of course, two cups of tea. When Shizuma's soft voice reached her ears with the light sounds of the plates of food making contact with the table, Youko blinked out of her reverie and looked up at the taller girl with a smile of gratitude.

"Thank you, Shizuma."

"It is my pleasure, Youko." Shizuma replied with a smile as she took a seat. "Shall we?"

Youko nodded as the two began to eat the lunch that Shizuma had laid out for them. They ate in silence with Youko's attention purely on the food that she was eating and Shizuma studying Youko's actions. When they finished the light meal, they both sat back and relaxed as they sipped on their tea. Youko didn't quite know what to say to Shizuma. She couldn't just ask why Shizuma had asked for her company. She knew that Miyuki or Nagisa was supposed to be in her place at the moment, but she felt like it wasn't her place to question Shizuma's actions.

"You must be wondering why I asked you to join me." Shizuma stated as she set her teacup down. Her gaze instantly shifted over to the other girl as her lips curled into a small smile.

Youko could only nod since there was no further word for her to confirm her curiosity.

"For the Rosa Chinensis of St Lillian Girls' Academy, I didn't think that someone with that title would be able to break a rule such as running in the hallway." Shizuma said with a light chuckle.

Youko blushed as she finally realized that there would be other students that night to witness her running toward Sachiko's room. Instead of lowering her head as if she was being lectured, she joined in with Shizuma as she chuckled as well. "Oh my, so I've been caught."

Shizuma gently waved a hand before her to dismiss the situation once she stopped her chuckle. "You are not in trouble, by the way, if that is what you are thinking."

Once again, Youko chuckled. "Oh, that is not what I am thinking." She soon regained her composure and glanced over at her companion. "I am quite curious as to why you have asked me to join you for lunch."

"If I said that I am concerned about your well-being, would you take that as my answer?" Shizuma asked with a lifted eyebrow.

"I would if you could give me a clear answer as to why you are concerned about me." Youko said with a raised eyebrow of her own.

"You didn't turn up to dinner last night." Shizuma casually started. "After running down the hallway, you skipped dinner and I didn't quite see you until this morning. When you entered the dining hall this morning, I could tell that you were forcing yourself to look happy. Please don't get me wrong, but it is my job to know whether the students are having troubles whether those troubles relate to the school or not."

Youko turned her head away, her dark chocolate orbs busied themselves with the beautiful flowers that were blooming in the Green House. Of course, there was something that was troubling her but it wasn't Shizuma's place to know what the trouble was. Even if she told the taller girl what had been troubling her, she'd doubt that Shizuma would be able to solve it. Shizuma had to shoulder a lot of responsibilities and she wasn't going to just let Shizuma know about her own personal problems.

"There is nothing for you to worry about, Shizuma." Youko said as she turned to look at her companion. "I can assure you that I will be fine."

Unfortunately for Youko, the silver hair beauty didn't approve of her answer. "I am not convinced, Youko." Shizuma sighed. "But I guess that you won't give me a satisfaction of knowing what has been troubling you."

Youko could only smile at her as she nodded. "I'm afraid so, Shizuma."

"Then I will give you a little advice, Youko." Shizuma said with a smile. "Sometimes in order for you to reach your destination, whether it is a place, a position in life or a person, you have to be brave and face the obstacles in your path. If you do not face it, you will regret about the choices in your life which you will never get back."

Youko smiled at the advice that she had received. Although she fully understood the meaning, but she didn't understand why Shizuma would give such an advice. So she decided to ask a question that she was sure didn't expect a three words answer to. "In other words?"

"_Talk to her_." Shizuma said with a knowing smile.

'_She couldn't be talking about…No, she couldn't, could she?'_ Youko thought as her eyes were slightly widened at Shizuma's response. She could just let it pass that the silver hair girl knew about her situation with Sei. However, that smile that was on the taller girl's lips was hard for her to ignore. She had to take this advice seriously. In other words, she needed to give herself the courage to actually face Sei. Then again, what was she going to say when she would see the blonde tonight? Sighing, she nodded her head towards the taller girl before she took a stand.

"Thank you for the advice, and thank you for the lunch, Shizuma."

"It is all my pleasure, Youko." Shizuma responded with a warm smile. "Take care."

"Take care." Youko murmured before she walked down the platform and exited the Green House.

Lunch wasn't entirely over and just by checking her wrist watch, she could see that she had twenty minutes left before lunch ended. Since there was nothing else for her to do in those twenty minutes, she decided to go into the cafeteria just so she wouldn't worry her friends furthermore. After entering the cafeteria though, she felt all eyes on her and the majority of the attention she was getting was from the Yumayurikai. So with a low sigh, she moved herself over to the group and took her seat next to Sachiko. Their eyes were still on her that made her eyebrow twitched a little. So sighing again, a little bit louder this time, the group immediately resumed their conversation as she sat there with a small smile on her face. When she turned to look on her left, she caught sight of Sei looking at her in concern. However, it was not the look of worries in the taller blonde's eyes that had got her attention. It was the tired look and slightly exhausted form that Sei was displaying that got her attention. She regarded her for a moment until she decided to look away when Sei didn't make any kind of move, other than staring at her.

"Rosa Chinensis, have you eaten yet?" Yumi asked softly as she turned her attention over to her grande soeur.

Youko smiled and nodded her head. "Yes, I just had lunch with the Etoile."

All eyes then turned to her and she tried her best to hide the twitch of her eyes. "Etoile-sama asked you to join her?"

"Yes." Youko responded softly.

"Did you get into trouble now?" Eriko asked teasingly as she smiled over at her friend in a playful manner.

"No, she just wanted to give me an advice." Youko said as the advice started to replay itself in her head. Well, the three words advice that had now gotten her to look over at Sei again but only for a short seconds.

"That's nice." Eriko commented, ending her question there as she sensed that whatever the advice was, it was personal and she didn't want to poke her head into it. "I'm sort of jealous that Hanazono-san invited you to lunch."

Yoshino grinned at that, finding a good way to piss her grande soeur off more likely. "Oh? Why are you jealous of Rosa Chinensis, Rosa Foetida? I thought you certainly do not care about spending a one-on-one time with a girl."

Eriko chuckled as she turned to face Yoshino. She had to hide that frown, just so she could win whatever argument that Yoshino had seemed to start. "I do not mind sitting down with a girl for lunch." She retorted.

"Really?" Yoshino said before she looked around the cafeteria in search of someone she could turn them to be her experiment. Upon finding one, a huge grin plastered on her face as she suddenly stood up. "I will get one for you right now!"

Eriko stood up as well once the Rosa Foetida en bouton petite soeur had made her way out of the table. "Hold on a second!" She softly called out to Yoshino whom was already on her way across the cafeteria and towards a table full of girls that were gazing over at the Roses' table.

Rei only sighed as she stood up. "I will bring them back." And with that she followed the two Rosa Foetida's members in hope that she would successfully bring them back into the table.

The scene earned a small giggle from Shimako and Sei was also laughing as well. The Red Rose family only sighed and shook their heads, while Yumi was in between laughing and mimicking her Onee-sama and grand soeur's actions. The Yumayurikai wouldn't be as fun if the Yellow Rose's family didn't exist after all.


	28. Chapter 28

**Twenty Eight**

How hard was it to tell the other girl about her feelings? How hard was it to actually witness the mask that her beloved was wearing because of her? The current Rose Gigantea couldn't stop but let her eyes stayed glue to the Rosa Chinensis at lunch that day. It was the shortest lunch that she had ever had, and the amount of time that she had been spending on was gazing into nothingness until the head of the Red Rose family showed up. However, she wasn't just staring at Mizuno Youko without a reason. She was preparing herself for a talk with Youko if she could get her alone. Well, she should be able to get Youko alone since the latter _would have _to return to their shared room. If she had to skip anything just to have a moment with Youko, she would do it. Hell, she would have _stalked_ the girl if she was so desperate to have that one moment alone with Youko.

Evening greeted both of the girls after they resided themselves back to their own room. At first Youko was reluctant to go back to her own room. She wasn't ready to face Sei just yet, but somewhere in the back of her mind Shizuma's words of advice, more of an encouragement now those three words echoed through her mind, had given her the strength that she needed. Sei had already excused herself to go back into their shared room before her. All she had to do now was to turn the doorknob, pushing the door open and letting herself in. Yet, she was standing outside the room, in front of the closed door, with her eyes tightly shut and a clenched hand pressing against her chest. Her heart was beating so fast that she was having a hard time calming down. After a few minutes or so, she finally opened her eyes and readied herself for whatever was going to happen inside this room.

Inside, Sei lifted her head as she heard the noise coming from the door. She turned her eyes towards the door, and had to force a smile upon her face when the very woman that she wanted to see that night had returned. She had to force a smile when Youko laid her eyes on her. She didn't want the other girl to see that she was upset because of her.

"Welcome back, Youko." Sei greeted warmly.

Youko smiled back at her even though it was a weak smile. She closed the door behind her after letting herself inside, and stood at the entrance as if she wasn't sure if she should move to her own bed or not. "Thank you, Sei." She murmured.

Sei watched as the dark hair girl fidgeted in her place. She also watched as Youko hadn't even left her post to move over to the bed at the other side of the room. If the pain in her heart was a tad bit unbearable last night when Youko didn't return to their shared room, it was truly unbearable now. The shorter girl acted as if she was a stranger, and that hurt more than anything else that she had experienced.

Sei sighed as she ran a hand through her blonde hair. She stood up from the bed that she had been sitting on, and walked over to where Youko was standing. She could see that Youko was watching her every movement, and she could clearly see that the other girl was trying as hard as she could to not crumble and break on the floor. The head of the White Rose didn't think that being in the same room such as her would cause the other girl such grief. Well, she needed to get her feelings across to the other girl. She needed Youko to understand her, at this very moment. She needed to clear the misunderstandings before she could feel a little bit of happiness for having Youko in her life, even if the latter didn't want to have anything to do with her.

While Sei was approaching her, Youko tried her best to calm her nerves down. She felt as if she could just tremble under Sei's gaze. She didn't think that she would let the blonde see the fragile part of her being. She should be strong, not only for Sei's sake, but her sake as well. She had been hiding her secret love for Sei for so long, and just a short amount of time at the Astrea Hill, she couldn't believe that she could let herself be so free and letting her walls down for Sei to enter. She shouldn't have done that. Sei was her weakness, she knew that. She knew that once she had given Sei her heart, whether the latter knew it or not, she would get hurt more than the blonde if something was to happen. Well, that _something_ did happen. Suddenly the image of the kiss that had tormenting her mind popped up. Youko turned her head away from the blonde, her eyes tightly shut as she tried to chase the image away.

"Youko."

Youko didn't realize that Sei had already reached her destination. She also didn't realize that the blonde was so close to her that Sei's scent was bombarding her nostrils. Of course, she had been close to the blonde before and her scent had never made her head spin like this. Yet, it was different tonight. Sei's scent was too strong and she was afraid that if she didn't stand her ground, she would have been overwhelmed by the White Rose's scent and succumbed into it.

"Look at me, Youko." Sei more than demanded as she placed both of her hands on either side of Youko's face.

When the Red Rose opened her eyes, she was greeted with Sei's hand and that was when her eyes widened in surprise. When she turned her head to look straight ahead, she let out a low gasp as dark chocolate orbs met with a pair of dark blue eyes. Youko could feel her face burning up at the closeness of both of their faces. If she could actually sniff in the scent of Sei, then she knew that Sei was that close to her but she didn't expect Sei to be…all up in her face! She was too stun to say anything, and just looking into the deepest pool of ocean blue she could feel herself drowning in them, and never wanting to come up.

Sei was afraid of this. She was afraid of the silent Youko. She was hoping to have some sort of reaction from Youko since she was this close to her. Yet, all she was receiving was the look of utter surprise and shock, and a quiet Youko as the shorter girl gazed into her eyes. She didn't know what the other girl was thinking. She didn't know how to ask the other girl what she was thinking. So she just stood there, her eyes searching for anything that would insure her that _her_ Youko was still in there. Unfortunately, the only things that she could see from Youko's dark chocolate eyes were the pain that she had caused, and…doubt?

"Youko, please say something." Sei murmured softly and soon enough her voice turned out as pleading at the end. "I don't care what you're going to say. You can yell at me. You can push me away. You can call me any bad names in the world. Just please…say something so I know that…you don't hate me."

Youko's eyes only widened as she heard the last part. Hate? How could her hate Sei? What possibly have led Sei to think that she would do such a thing? So the Red Rose opened her mouth to respond but then quickly shut it close. She didn't realize that the small action would set a tear to roll down Sei's face. The last time that she had seen Sei cry was so long ago. To see the blonde's tear, all because of her, was just too much to bear. She didn't know if words would convince the other girl that she didn't hate her. So, after summoning what courage she had, Youko placed both of her hands on Sei's cheek and closed the small space between their faces. Their lips touched briefly, and even if it was just a light kiss, both girls could feel a faint jolt. Yes, even though it was faint, it was still there for both of them to feel.

Youko pulled away seconds later, despite the fact that she didn't want to look at Sei but she willed herself to gaze directly into those dark blue eyes. "I don't hate you Sei," the Red Rose said with a weak smile. "I love you."

Eyes wide, mouth agape, heart pounding, and her heart beat was all that she could hear. Sei was speechless. She didn't expect a kiss. She didn't even expect the confession. She didn't expect _any_ of that. All she expected was to hear Youko's voice and the latter saying she didn't hate her. That was all she was expecting, but surely not all the added extras that she had received.

"Youko…"

"Don't." Youko quickly said as she turned her head away. After the kiss and the confession had registered in her head, she felt weak. Now it was her tears to fall. "I know you don't feel the same way…But I…I just want you to know how I feel…"

Sei frowned as she made Youko to look at her again. Youko's eyes widened when Sei crashed her lips upon her. When Youko didn't respond to the kiss, Sei applied more pressure against the shorter girl's lips until the latter responded to her. She knew for a fact that words wouldn't convince Youko that she was more than willing to return the feelings. So if words couldn't reach her, then she would have to settle with her actions. Then again, it was her actions that got her into this mess.

When the need of air beginning to hit both of them, Sei slowly pulled away as she tried to regain her breathing. Both of the girls' faces were flushed, though Youko's face was flustered more than Sei's. Once Sei had gotten her breathing back, she moved in again. This time, the kiss was gentle and Youko didn't seem to be hesitating like before. Unfortunately, despite how Sei wanted the kiss to last a little longer, she pulled away again.

"We need to talk." Sei said as she pulled her body away from Youko. Once Youko nodded her head in understanding, the blonde turned to walk over to her bed and sat down. She then watched Youko did the same but to her side of the bed. The White Rose let out a small sigh as she placed her arms on her lap, her upper body using them for support. "Where were you last night?"

Youko's bit her lower lip gently as she looked away. "At Sachiko's."

"I see." Sei responded, the pain evidently showed in her tone.

Youko quickly turned her head to look at Sei. Something tugged at her heart, making her feel guilty for avoiding Sei and hurting the blonde in the process. So she bit her lip again, her eyes lowered as she spoke. "I'm sorry for avoiding you, Sei."

Sei chuckled but it was emotionless. "I understand why you would want to avoid me." She then frowned. "Actually, I don't understand why you would."

Youko sighed and shook her head. "I didn't know what came over me," She began softly. "After I saw you…kissing Chikaru, my mind wasn't working right. I ran…" She sighed again. "Yes, I ran. My first destination was our room but I quickly thought against it. The only person that I could go to was Sachiko and I knew that she wouldn't be in her room. So I went there instead. I…shut myself in her room until she returned."

"The kiss between Chikaru and I is meaningless." Sei firmly stated.

Youko quickly shook her head. "It looked…so real."

Sei snorted slightly. "My back was facing you when she caught me off guard. Of course it would look real!"

"She caught you off guard?" Youko asked as she looked up at her companion in surprise.

Sei sighed and nodded. "Yes, she did. You see, she was just trying to push me to confess to you. Since I doubted your feelings for me, she had these _outrageous_ plans to get me to _literally_ see that you feel the same way. Unfortunately, I did actually see that. And I'm terribly sorry for hurting you…unintentionally."

Unconsciously, Youko lifted a hand to touch her lips. "So, that kiss earlier…"

Sei smiled, and for once, the smile reached her eyes that day. "I really did mean to kiss you, Youko. I thought that if I told you that I love you too, you wouldn't believe me." She then chuckled as she leaned back, her hand reaching up to scratch at the back of her head in a nervous manner. "So I thought that if I could prove my love into my own action…then maybe you'd see that I'm telling the truth."

Youko blushed as she diverted her eyes from Sei's. "You're an idiot, Sei."

There was a soft sound of movement from the opposite side from Youko's, and the Red Rose didn't have to turn to see that Sei was making her way to her. Soon enough she felt a light pressure under her chin as the White Rose gently lifted her head up. Once again, dark chocolate orbs met the deep ocean pools. And once again Youko felt like she could drown in them.

"You love this idiot." Sei said with a smirk as Youko chuckled.

"Ah, I guess I do. I hope that you don't mind having this meddler in your life." The dark hair girl said with a glint of playfulness in her eyes.

Sei chuckled as she lowered her head, closing the space between her and Youko. "I don't. In fact, I love this meddler." Her lips claimed Youko's once again, and this time she poured all of her feelings into that kiss. She could feel the smile from the other girl, and because of that she felt a smile of her own surfacing.

When Sei pulled away, she rested her forehead against Youko's, a smile still attached to her lips. "I hope that it is not too late to ask, but will you be my date to the dance tomorrow?"

Youko grinned as she shook her head lightly, then giggled at the fact that Sei's head was following her movement. "It is not too late, and I would be delighted to be your date to the dance tomorrow."

Somewhere in another part of the Strawberry Dormitory, and inside another students' room, two figures were enjoying themselves with the board game that one of them had took out. Minamoto Chikaru and Torii Eriko were seated on the floor with the only thing that separated them was the chess game that Chikaru had pulled out in the middle. None of the girls was winning and they were already at their second game. To think that they always ended up in a stalemate every time one of them thought they could take a win. Despite that fact they were thoroughly focused on the game. They didn't take the first stalemate serious. In fact, they took it as a challenge, a very interesting challenge. Occasionally there would be a few giggles and laughter being exchanged. To Torii Eriko, rooming with Minamoto Chikaru certainly was the greatest idea that the student councils had thought up, only because she found Chikaru to be extremely interesting to observe. To Minamoto Chikaru, she was thoroughly impressed by the Yellow Rose's intelligence and appearance, not to mention the title that the other girl was holding. The Yellow Rose was very interesting to converse with.

"I've never thought that I would come to meet another meddler." Eriko suddenly said as she picked up a Pawn, and moved it a square forward.

Chikaru chuckled as she studied the chess board. "I've never thought that I would come to meet an observer as good as myself."

Once Chikaru had placed her Knight to where her Queen was, threatening and blocking the Queen's movement, Eriko let out a small chuckle. "Well, I do hope that the pain that you've caused them was well worth it." She then picked up her Queen and moved it across the board, away from Chikaru's advancing Knight.

Chikaru brought a finger to her chin as she studied the board once more. "Mmm, I hope that they've made up by now." She then placed her Knight piece to where Eriko's pawn was, and smiled. "And I do hope that they don't hate me for it."

Eriko chuckled as she glanced over to her companion. "You really are an interesting girl, Chikaru."

Chikaru lifted her eyes from the board and directed them over to the brunette. Her smile widened a little as she tilted her head, her eyes twinkling with amusement. "Does that mean that you are interested in me, Eriko?"

Eriko blinked before a whole-hearted laugh escaped her lips. "You're setting your hope just a little bit too high, Chikaru. I wouldn't want to crush it."

It was Chikaru to laugh then. "So, should I be waiting for you to take an interest on me or should I be taking an interest on you?"

"Hmm," Eriko seemed to be thinking about her answer as she looked back down on the chess board. She then took the Pawn that was the closest to Chikaru's Knight, and moved it up a square so that on the next move, she'd be taking the Knight out if Chikaru didn't rescue it. "It all depends on how interesting you can make yourself seem to be, Chikaru. Then again, it all depends on me."

Chikaru smiled and nodded in understanding. _'One step at a time_,'she told herself as she focused her eyes on the chess board again. Even if things wouldn't turn out the way that she wanted with Eriko, the brunette would still remain her friend. That was one thing that she would never let go of; friends.

* * *

_A/N_

__No, I'm not thinking of putting Eriko and Chikaru together. That would be playing fire with fire. Just imagine what both of them can do as friends. Putting them together is like...I don't know, I can't find a way to describe it, other than both the Strawberry Panic characters and Marimite characters are going to be fearing these two.

Anyway, the next chapter will be the last chapter. I might make a sequel though. Marimite time with Strawberry Panic is not over until I say it is! Which will be after Summer School. Our Marimite characters should be wearing bikini too ~


	29. Chapter 29

**Twenty Nine**

"Oh my god! Today is the day! It's here! It's finally here!" Yoshino chanted happily as she tried her best not to skip around in circle in Shimako's and Yumi's room.

The three girls hadn't seen each other. No, that wasn't it. They hadn't spent a lot of time together ever since they had gotten so interested with being alone with either their new friends, or with the Onee-samas, though the latter wasn't in Shimako's case. So for them to spend their first Saturday morning with just the three of them had made them happy. They really had missed their times together.

Shimako was sitting quietly on her bed as she watched Yoshino lightly bounced on Yumi's bed in excitement. The blonde had a serene smile on her face and though she wanted to express her excitement like Yoshino, her eyes could only do it for her as they danced with excitement. Yumi, on the other hand, was giggling as her body was moving with the movement of the bed from Yoshino's excitement.

"Finally, I get to see Rei-chan wearing a tux!" Yoshino exclaimed happily.

"I thought she would be wearing a dress and you a tux, Yoshino-san." Yumi commented as she looked over at her braided-hair friend in curiosity.

Yoshino chuckled in amusement as she shook her head. "Nope! I'm wearing the dress and she's wearing a tux. I'm not letting her wear a dress if she doesn't want to attend the dance with me!"

"Oh my," Shimako giggled softly into her hand. "Wouldn't that mean you wouldn't be attending the dance with her too, Yoshino-san?"

"I can easily fix that." Yoshino stated as she stopped bouncing on her spot, and crossed her arms.

Both Yumi and Shimako giggled at their friend's antic.

"How? Who would you have asked to come to the dance with as an alternative?" Yumi asked.

Yoshino closed her eyes as she began to think. If the second youngest of the Yellow Rose' family wouldn't be able to attend the dance with her, then who would it be? It would have to be her new friends. Then again, her new friends consisted of Aoi Nagisa, Suzumi Tamao, Konohana Hikari, Nanto Yaya, Tsukidate Chiyo and Okuwaka Tsubomi. She couldn't bring herself to ask the two underclassmen to go to the dance with her, granted she didn't know them that well. Nagisa, Hikari and Yaya were all taken. Well, she couldn't tell with Nagisa since she couldn't figure out the girl's relationship with the Etoile. Even she had gone with Yumi to help her fellow Lillian student with Nagisa's French, she couldn't get an absolute answer from the red head regarding the silver hair beauty of Astrea. So the only person that was available was Tamao. She had come to like the blue hair girl but there were time that she felt uncomfortable under the girl's gaze. She didn't quite pay attention to the girl that much either.

'_Come to think of it, I spend most of my time talking to Nagisa and Yaya,'_ Yoshino thought as she gave out a sigh. With Nagisa, the conversation just flowed since the red head was so full of life just like Yumi. It was so easy to be under Nagisa's presence, and befriending the girl wasn't much of an effort. With Yaya, they shared the same rebellious streak and she admitted that she had gone with Yaya to break some rules, or as Yaya'd love to call it 'Things You Should Do During High School'. Of course, she had never told Rei about it. She couldn't possibly imagine what kind of punishment she'd get herself under if Rei was to find out.

Another sigh escaped the braided-hair girl's lips as she opened brown orbs. Okay, so she couldn't _fix it_ if Rei wouldn't go to the dance with her. In other words, she would have to go alone. In other _other_ words, she would have to shut her mouth and accept that Rei being in a dress. Her dream of seeing Rei in a tux would shatter. Actually, it hadn't quite happened yet. Of course, the dance was just a few hours away so her dream might actually come true! Then again, she and Rei didn't quite have any kind of _contract_ that Rei would have to show up in a tux.

"Alright," Yoshino finally said as she tightened her crossed arms across her chest. "I can't fix it." She admitted as she pouted, her face flushed in embarrassment.

While Shimako was trying her best not to laugh, she resorted in giggling while Yumi was laughing whole-heartedly at her friend. It was quite a rare sight for both of the girls to witness Yoshino's defeated form. No, it was a _very rare_ sight for both of them to hear Yoshino admitting defeat.

"I'm sure whichever Rei-sama decides to wear, it will look good on her." Shimako said after her giggling subsided.

Yoshino just rolled her eyes. "Yeah, and gaining more fan girls as if she doesn't have enough!"

Yumi soon stopped laughing as she smiled at her friend. She then placed a hand on Yoshino's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. "Rei-sama only cares about you, Yoshino-san. I'm very sure that she doesn't even know any of the girls that seem to be flocking her way."

"Yeah, I know that," Yoshino said, sighing. "I'm still a little bit uncomfortable when I have to see her being surrounded with those girls."

Both of the other girls only smiled in understanding. Well, Shimako wasn't sure how she would react if that was to happen with Sei, her Onee-sama. If it was to happen with the older blonde though, she knew that she wouldn't have minded. After all, Sei was just being Sei; a flirt.

"Are you guys hungry?" Yumi suddenly spoke up as she felt her stomach started to grumble.

"Mm, it is almost lunch time after all." Shimako commented as she checked the watch on her wrist. "Shall we go now or later?"

"I'm sure that everyone is already at the cafeteria." Yoshino said as she stood up. "Let's go!"

Yumi smiled as both she and Shimako stood up. The three girls then walked out of the room and toward the cafeteria. On the way there they didn't miss the look of admiration from the other students that they passed by. Yoshino was in front of the other two girls. Her head was held high as she walked graciously along the hallway leading out of the dormitory. The grace that she was carrying, along with the white uniform of St Spica, could easily put her into one of St Spica's most loved idols.

Shimako wasn't far behind with her checkered uniform from St Lulim. With just a short amount of time being in St Lulim, she could actually see that half of the students there wanted to be _exactly_ like her. It was because that the checkered uniform didn't quite fit the serene and angelic aura that Shimako was giving off. If she was to wear the St Spica's white uniform, she would have been carrying out more grace than Yoshino ever could. But because she was wearing the checkered uniform, her grace was putting the St Lulim's uniform to shame. Only because of this that the St Lulim's students were starting to be a little bit more proper, and more gracious like Shimako _and_ Chikaru.

Yumi wasn't far behind her other two friends, fortunately. With the black and green sophisticated uniform of St Miator, she really did feel out of place the first time she had put it on. When she stood next to Sachiko and Youko, she felt as if she was wearing the wrong kind of uniform. While Youko suited the uniform perfectly, Sachiko – just like Shimako – put the uniform to shame. As for her, the uniform put her to shame. She learned to get over it and had successfully made herself to fit in with both of her school and uniform. It had only taken her a week to feel as graceful as her two friends when she walked with them in her St Miator's uniform.

The three young roses were the talk of the three schools. When the oldest of the roses should be the talk of the schools, the student population didn't think that it was necessary to talk about the _en boutons_ and the _Rosas_. Maybe it was because they could relate to the three young roses, in a way. Or maybe it was because the three young roses could carry with themselves so much grace that even they couldn't do so.

"Wow," Yoshino said as she seated herself beside Rei with relief washing over her face. "I did not think the walk from Shimako-san and Yumi-san's room would be so stressful."

Shimako and Yumi both giggled as they settled down beside their respected Onee-sama.

"Stressful?" Rei asked as she turned to look at her cousin worriedly.

"People were staring at us, Rei-sama." Yumi said as she picked up a fork. The three girls had gotten their lunch after arriving, and they weren't surprise that the rest of the Yumayurikai were there eating and chatting among themselves.

"I've never thought that the three of you would get so many admirers." Sei said in a playful manner as she chuckled. "It feels like I'm being left behind."

Yoshino puffed as she looked over at the older White Rose. "You can have _all_ of them!"

Sei burst out laughing while Youko, Eriko and Shimako giggled. Rei could only sigh at her cousin's antic. She couldn't change her cousin's behavior as much as she wanted to. At least Yoshino hadn't gone crazy and started snapping at people for stressing her out just by looking at her. That much she was grateful for.

"You know, I'm curious to see everyone's dresses tonight." Eriko said with a glint of interest in her eyes as she looked at each and every single one of the Roses. "I wonder who is going to stand out the most."

It was then that all eyes turned to Sachiko, and she coughed under her hand before she looked up at them with a small frown. "I'm very sure that the position has already been taken." She then turned to look around the cafeteria, in hope that she could prove her point. Unfortunately for her, the silver hair beauty that she was trying to look for, wasn't even in sight.

"Well then, we will see tonight." Sei said, chuckling before she added a playful yet flirtatious wink over to Sachiko, successfully irritated the younger girl.

"I hope that is not _all_ you want to see." Youko said, feigning a sigh as she looked over at her date.

"Oh don't worry, Youko," Sei said as she quickly scooted herself over to Youko before draping an arm over her. "There will be a _certain someone_ I will be keeping my eyes on."

**-x-**

"Do you need help with your hair, Yumi-san?" Shimako asked softly as she looked over at her brunette friend. The other girl was sitting in front of the vanity desk, her eyes were focusing on her hair as she had an undecided expression on her face.

"I don't know." Yumi answered as she ran a hand through her hair. "I'm not sure if I should tie it up as usual or let it down."

Yoshino quickly came over to where Yumi sat and grabbed a comb. "Let me help you with that."

Yumi smiled as she nodded. The three girls had decided to get ready and walk to the dancing hall together. All three of them looked absolutely stunning. Shimako's dark silky blonde hair didn't need much to prepare on other than having it resting on her left side of the shoulder. Yoshino had decided to make a loose braid and resting it on the side of her shoulder. Now, it was Yumi's turn and Yoshino already had something in mind.

The youngest Yellow Rose gave Yumi's hair a few more strokes of the comb before setting the comb down. She then picked up a curler and started curling the girl hair. She didn't curl the whole head. She only curled a few strands of the girl's hair just to make an impression. Once she was done, she put the curler down and ran her hand through Yumi's soft hair with a smile.

"Do you like it?" She asked, her eyes watching the other girl's expression from the mirror.

Yumi turned her head to the side, then to the other side, reviewing her now new hairstyle before smiling widely. "Yes! I love it! Thank you, Yoshino-san!"

Yoshino grinned as she moved back. She then watched her two friends putting the final touch to their dresses before they turned to her with a smile.

"Shall we go?" Yoshino asked before receiving a nod from two of her friends.

They arrived at the dancing hall and was absolutely excited to see all the girls and boys, all dressed up for this event. The boys were looking very smart and handsome, while the girls looked as beautiful as ever. However, the three young Roses weren't there to admire everybody. They were there to admire their dates, and it didn't take them long to find them as well.

Yumi smiled when she caught sight of her Onee-sama, Sachiko. She was grateful that the other Roses were there with her since by the pale look of Sachiko's face, she could tell that the latter was having a hard time calming down. However, despite the fact that Sachiko was looking pale, the raven hair beauty really did stand out from the crowded dancing hall. The raven hair heiress was wearing a simple dark purple dress that stopped just to show the matching purple heels that she got on. The left side of her hair was being held up by a purple hairpin, while the rest of her hair was curled down on the right side. If Yumi could she would just stand there and admire the beauty that was Ogasawara Sachiko.

Yoshino was grinning from ear to ear when her eyes focused on her date, also known as her Onee-sama and cousin. She didn't expect the older girl to wear what she wanted her to wear, which was an overall white tuxedo with a black tie to finish it off. Yes, she had been telling – or rather lecturing her – to wear the tux to the dance since it would match what she was wearing, which was a black and white cocktail dress with a black bow tied at the waist. She wore a pair of white heels to go with the dress, but even if the heels didn't match, what Rei was wearing surely would.

Shimako's cheeks were caressing a soft hue of pinkness when her eyes locked onto the Saintly Chorus' star. She actually did _not expect_ Yaya to wear a tuxedo _at all_! While the Lillian Angel was wearing a light pink strapless satin cocktail dress with a black ribbon tied around her waist, Yaya was wearing a black tuxedo, a white vest and a white blouse underneath, and topped it off with a beautiful red bow as a tie. However, instead of the usual long pants, Yaya sported a pair of crimson red short shorts to show off her slender legs. She wore a pair of white knee length stockings and a pair of black, polished leather shoes. Her hair was the same, although it had a slight curl to it. Overall, Yaya couldn't look any more charming than she was now to Shimako's eyes.

Without a word, the three girls split off to walk over to their dates.

Sachiko's demeanor seemed to relax when Yumi walked over to her, and she couldn't help but let her deep sapphire eyes wandered from Yumi's beautiful face to the blue cocktail dress that she was wearing. Just from a small glance from the other two younger Roses, she knew that they planned to be wearing the same style of dress apart from the design. And while Shimako and Yoshino's cocktail dress stopped above their kneecaps, Yumi's dress stopped below hers. She also wore a pair of black heels and for a second Sachiko feared that Yumi might fall just by the look of a small struggle coming from the girl that was approaching her.

"You look beautiful, Yumi."

Yumi blushed under Sachiko's soft gaze as she managed some courage to look straight into the deep sapphire eyes with a shy smile. "As do you, Onee-sama."

"Well, the gang is here except for Shimako." Sei chuckled as she glanced over to where her angelic petite soeur was. When she caught sight of Yaya, she raised an eyebrow before she let out a small whistle in disbelief. "Is that Yaya-chan?"

Youko turned to the direction that Sei was looking and smiled. However, the smile quickly disappeared when she felt her companion's movement. It wasn't long until she knew exactly what her companion was up to. "Sei, I'm very sure that they do not need to hear your playful teasing."

Sei rolled her eyes. "It won't hurt." And then she was off toward where Shimako and her date were standing. Youko sighed and shook her head before she excused herself to follow her date.

Yoshino turned to look at where the White and Red Rose gone off too. When she saw what Yaya was wearing, she giggled. "I guess I know why she's dressing like that."

Yumi turned to stare at her friend in confusion and curiosity. "What do you mean, Yoshino-san?"

Yoshino just shook her head and replied Yumi's question with a smile. She then leaned against Rei when the latter placed an arm around her shoulders. All she knew that Shimako was going to get one pleasant surprise from her date. And who knows, the Lillian Angel might like it.

* * *

_A/N_

__I know, I know, I'm mean for finishing the story off like this. I'm not sure whether I should apologize or not since I enjoy being mean...Haha, anyway, I did say that there will be a sequel right? Well, in the sequel I'm going to try my best to...write about Shimako and Yaya relationship ~ Oh I can really tell it's going to be fun, ehehehehe.

Well, see y'all around next time ;)


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